In a veiled attack at Congress and Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday said that allies of "jungle raj" in Bihar have a problem with chanting "Bharat Mata Ki Jai" and "Jai Shri Ram".
Addressing a rally here, he said that Bihar has left behind the darkness of insecurity and anarchy and added that poor were denied the right to vote during 'jungle raj'.
"Those who ran 'jungle raj' in Bihar and their allies want that you don't raise 'Bharat Mata ki Jai' slogans. Think about it. There are people who get feverish just by saying 'Bharat Mata Ki Jai'. Allies of jungle raj want slogans of 'Bharat Mata ki Jai' should not be raised. They want that you should not say 'Jai Shri Ram'," the Prime Minister said and later ended his speech with the 'Bharat Mata ki Jai' slogan.
"Allies of jungle raj in Bihar have problem with Bharat Mata. One group says you should not raise the Bharat Mata ki Jai slogan and the other group experiences headaches due to the slogan. Now, these people who are against Bharat Mata have come to seek votes. There is a need to give a befitting answer to such people in this election," he added.
The Prime Minister said that booths used to be captured during 'jungle raj' but now people are not afraid.
"Poor people did not have the right to choose their government. During jungle raj, the poor were not allowed to step out of their houses. Booths were captured. Such people are trying to take Bihar back to that time. But they are forgetting that people will not be misled by them and are not afraid of them either," he said.
"Today, Bihar has left behind the darkness of insecurity and anarchy. The double engine government has done unprecedented work at a big scale in past years," he added.
PM Modi said that a new foundation of Bihar inspired by self-reliant and glorious history has been laid in the past years. "This is the time for building modern Bihar. People of Bihar know that this resolution will only be fulfilled when there is NDA government both at the Centre and the State," he said.
The Prime Minister made an appeal to people to buy local products while celebrating the festivals.
"Khadi products sold in the last 5 years are more than what was sold in the last 25 years. How many weavers would have benefitted? Two weeks back, a Khadi store in Delhi sold products worth Rs 1 crore in one day... In coming times, many festivals including Dhanteras, Diwali are coming. I urge you to buy local things as much as possible. With this, Diwali will not only be celebrated at your home but also at the home of the poor," he said.
Speaking further on his 'Vocal for Local' appeal, he said that the jute sector is a great example of how much protection the NDA government is giving to the products of farmers.
"Today, when the country is rapidly moving to free itself from single-use plastic, it is directly benefiting our jute farmers and the jute industry," he added.
Polling began at 7 am on 94 assembly seats across 17 districts in the second phase of Bihar polls on Tuesday with precautionary measures against COVID-19 in place.
Voting in the third phase will take place on 7 and the results will be declared on November 10.
( With inputs from ANI )
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