Lok Sabha Elections 2024: Modi is 'messiah' of poor, says Rajnath Singh

Sambalpur: Describing Prime Minister Narendra Modi as a "messiah" of the poor in India, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Sunday claimed that as many as 25 crore people have been lifted from below the poverty line under the PM's leadership.

Singh said this while addressing an election rally at Rairakhole under the Sambalpur Lok Sabha seat. Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan is the BJP candidate in the Sambalpur constituency.

"Beginning from Jawahar Lal Nehru to Indira Gandhi, Rajiv Gandhi and Manmohan Singh, all have failed to eradicate poverty from the country. However, Modi is the first prime minister who could reduce the miseries of the poor people in this country," Singh said.

The Defence minister said PM Modi has provided pucca ghar, piped water to households, free of cost cooking gas, free foodgrains, toilets and many other things to the poor people of India during the last 10 years.

He said the BJP as promised has ensured the building of the Sri Ram Temple in Ayodhya which silenced the critics. "As Ram Lala has come to his temple, now Ram Rajya will be established in India," he said.

Singh came down heavily on Odisha’s BJD government for not implementing the Ayushman Bharat scheme which provides free health service to the people. "If voted to power, the BJP government will issue Ayushman Bharat cards to the people of Odisha," Singh said.

While calling upon the gathering to vote for the Lotus symbol to further the welfare schemes for the poor by the Modi government, Singh asked whether Modi's welfare schemes are reaching the people in Odisha.

The senior BJP leader said the people will get pucca ghar, piped water, Ayushman Bharat card and other facilities as soon as the BJP government is formed in Odisha. Singh blamed both the Congress and BJD for the sorry state of affairs of Odisha. The Congress has ruled the state for 50 years and BJD for 25 years.

He claimed that India is the only country which provided free two doses of COVID-19 vaccines to all the citizens of the country.

He said Modi also provided an additional 5 kg of foodgrains to the poor people during the pandemic period. "This is Modi’s sensitivity towards the requirement of the poor people," Singh said.

Claiming that Modi has enhanced the image of India globally, Singh said: "Our PM talked to authorities of both Russia and Ukraine and stopped the war between the two countries for four and half an hour during which over 22,000 Indian students were rescued from the war zone.

He further said that Modi also highlighted Odisha's pride and culture during the G20 summit. "There is no international leader who has not taken a picture during the G20 summit with Konark wheel in the background," he said and attacked the state's BJD for spoiling Odisha’s literature, art, culture and tradition.

The Defence minister also raised the issue of Ratna Bhandar (Lord Jagannath's treasury) and blamed Odisha's BJD government for the missing keys. "The BJP will open Lord Jagannath's Ratna Bhandar in Puri temple after it forms government in Odisha," he said.

Referring to Pakistan Occupied Kashmir (PoK), the Defence minister said that things are fast changing in Kashmir after the abolition of Article 370 from Jammu and Kashmir.

Stating that PoK is also an integral part of India, Singh said the people of the PoK have now started revolting against Pakistani authorities. "We need not go to a war to get PoK. The people of the PoK will automatically prefer India as their country," Singh said.

Claiming that Modi also ended the 'triple talaq', Singh said the BJP does not do politics for votes, but for building the nation.