In Lucknow, Modi echoes Indira Gandhi but doesn't announce any gains

Prime Minister. Narendra Modi today addressed a massive public rally in Lucknow, to launch his campaign for Uttar Pradesh assembly polls. He didn’t announce any new ‘gains’ after the 50-days of note ban ‘pain’, and only cursorily referred to the promises he made on the New Year’s Eve.

Modi said his opponents have become “politically irrelevant”, and even echoed former prime minister Indira Gandhi. She had famously said in her 1971 election campaign, where her party’s slogan was “Garibi Hatao’, remove poverty: “Wah kahate hain Indira hatao, hum kahate hain garibi hatao’’ (my opponents call for Indira’s removal, I want poverty to be removed).

In Lucknow, Modi said all opposition parties have joined forces against him. He said that the Samajwadi Party and Bahujan Samaj Party never see eye to eye but have in once voice criticized the note ban decision. “Wah kahate hain Modi hatao, main kahata hoon kaladhan hatao, bhrashtachar hatao (they say remove Modi, I say end black money, end corruption),” the PM said.

Modi impressed upon party workers and the public how the large gathering at the rally was proof that the BJP had already won the assembly polls. It was reminiscent of the large public rallies that Modi had addressed all across Bihar in the assembly polls in the state in October-November 2015, where he would present the large crowds that turned up for his public meetings as a fait accompli for the elections. However, the coming together of Lalu Prasad Yadav’s Rashtriya Janata Dal, Nitish Kumar’s Janata Dal United and Congress ensured the BJP and its allies were decimated in the polls.
 

In Lucknow, Modi spoke about his note ban decision being poor friendly but at the end of his speech. He said the opposition parties were against the note ban decision and are also against the schemes he announced for farmers, expectant mothers, middle classes, small traders and entrepreneurs and others.
 

Modi appealed to the people of UP to overcome the divisions of caste to vote for a government that will bring development. In yet another reminder of his Bihar campaign, Modi said his government in Delhi has given Rs 2.5 lakh crore to Uttar Pradesh in the last two and a half years but this hasn’t reached the people. He also said that his government has done much for the farmers, but again the UP government has not transferred it to farmers.