Modi, Mulayam in war of words as UP political arena hots up

Takes a dig at Yadav for saying former would not be able to convert UP into Gujarat

Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)’s prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi and Samajwadi Party (SP) chief Mulayam Singh Yadav traded barbs while addressing their respective political rallies in Uttar Pradesh on Thursday.

While Modi was addressing his rally in Gorakhpur, Yadav’s rally was 200 km away in Varanasi.

Modi took a dig at Yadav for saying the former would not be able to convert UP into a Gujarat. “Netaji, do you understand what it really means to convert UP into Gujarat? It means 24-hour electricity in every village and town,” Modi said sarcastically to the cheering crowd.

In a lighter vein, he suggested that the father (Mulayam) and son (Akhilesh Yadav) were chasing him by pitching their public meetings against his.

Yadav, on the other hand, attacked Modi for professing to turn UP into Gujarat, by referring to the 2002 riots there. “A rally is on in Gorakhpur where the chief guest is BJP’s prime ministerial candidate. They say, they'll create a Gujarat (here). But please think again, you will not be in a position to do a Gujarat. You’ll do a Gujarat, commit atrocities and massacres. Because this is what you have done there," he said. He even compared the performance of Gujarat and UP governments, asking if the Modi government had given unemployment allowance, farm-loan waiver and social benefits to society.

Modi also flayed the Congress for its “chai-wala” comments aimed at him. He said the comment is an insult to the poor, for whom the Congress has done nothing.

“Congress wants people to always remain poor for political and electoral gains. It is basically an anti-poor outfit,” Modi said in his signature rhetoric. He said India needs good governance to realise its full potential and to eradicate poverty and inequality. UP accounts for 80 Lok Sabha seats and all political parties are trying their best to garner as many seats from the state as possible.

SP, the ruling party in the state, is up against a resurgent BJP and a vengeful Bahujan Samaj Party, led by Mayawati, seeking to regain its lost ground. The new kid on the block, the Aam Aadmi Party, is also in the fray.