Mangaluru: “Following a faith has become a crime, and chanting Ayyappa or Sabarimala can land you in jail in Kerala,” Prime Minister Narendra Modi said, raising the bogey of Hindutva at the saffron bastion of Mangaluru, on Saturday, as people cheered him on. His public m eeting at Nehru Maidan was a big crowd-puller as the grounds was jam packed and people climbed trees around the grounds to get a glimpse of him.
“People want a Majboot (strong) sarkar, but the opposition wants a Majboor (weak) government,” he said.
On his foreign visits, he said that India is now being hailed in the US, England, Russia and Canada. When he asked who was responsible for it, the people shouted 'Modi.' But he, in his inimical style, replied, “It is not because of me, but because of your one vote. Your blessings and support has provided me the strength to take strong decisions.”
On the Congress-JD(S) coalition government in the state and Maha Gathbandhan at the national level, he said, “The inspiration for Congress and JD(S) is dynasty and they try their best to provide a route to the last person in their families. Our inspiration is nationalism. We want to bring the last person in society to the front. Theirs is Vamshodhay, while ours is Antyoday.”
On Sabarimala issue, he said. “The Communist government is ruling in Kerala, which is also part of the Maha Gathbandhan. Raising the name of Sabarimala is liable to imprisonment. A candidate was jailed for 15 days and was released yesterday.”
He claimed that the Congress had put the banking sector on a ventilator in 2014 and between 2006 and 2014, the government gave away loans double than what the banks cleared from 1947 to 2006!
“The phone banking of 'Namdars' had destroyed banks. But they are unhappy as your 'Chowkidar' stopped it. Michel, Saxena and Talwar are already in prison. If they are in prison, others too will follow," he said, referring to the opposition blaming him for financial defaulters leaving the country.
Wooing the large fishermen community, he said that his government has chalked out various programmes for them. “Once the Modi government comes back to power, the separate ministry for fisheries will be formed. Fishermen are being given the Kisan Credit Card and have also been made beneficiaries of various schemes.”
Urging the people to give the BJP a complete majority, he said, “In the last Assembly election, we fell short and the state is facing problems. A small mistake has resulted in a big loss. People should fill the shortfall with interest.”
