Uttarakhand polls: Shah campaigns in Rudraprayag, asks people to bring BJP back to power

PTI, Jan 28, 2022, 6:12 PM IST

Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Friday held a door-to-door campaign and addressed poll meetings in Uttarakhand’s Rudraprayag district, appealing to people to bring the BJP back to power in the state to ensure good governance for another five years.

Shah, who also offered prayers at the Rudranath temple, distributed pamphlets listing the work done by the BJP government during its tenure and what the party plans to do during the next five years if it returns to power.

He also targeted the previous Congress dispensation, describing it as a government of ”corruption and scams”.

Addressing a gathering of ex-servicemen, Shah said, ”You gave us your blessings in 2014 and 2019 by giving us all the five Lok Sabha seats. Then you gave us a massive mandate in 2017, giving us 57 out of the 70 assembly seats.” ”You have seen the work done by us. You have to vote for good governance for another five years so that the big projects already underway are completed,” he said.

The minister said soldiers from Uttarakhand are protecting the country’s frontiers from Ladakh to Kutch with great valour and dedication, and they have to show the same dedication in protecting democracy as well.

Remembering late General Bipin Rawat, who hailed from Uttarakhand, Shah said his contribution as an Army chief and the country’s first Chief of Defence Staff cannot be forgotten.

”General Rawat had worked out an action plan for the modernisation of the armed forces. Prime Minister Narendra Modi is implementing it,” he said.

The country’s defence budget had been increased from Rs 2 lakh crore in 2013-14 to Rs 4.78 lakh crore under the Modi government, he added.

General Rawat and 13 others, including his wife Madhulika, were killed after the Indian Air Force helicopter they were travelling in crashed near Coonoor in Tamil Nadu on December 8 last year.

Shah cited Chardham all-weather road, Rishikesh-Karnaprayag rail line, reconstruction of Kedarnath and Badrinath as major infrastructure projects on which substantial progress has been made in the last five years.

He said a complete five-year tenure of Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami, who has the blessings of the Narendra Modi government at the Centre, will see their completion.

”Give the BJP two-thirds majority and strengthen the hands of a young chief minister and Prime Minister Narendra Modi,” the minister told the gathering.

Dhami took over as the Uttarakhand chief minister in July last year as his predecessor Tirath Singh Rawat resigned months after taking charge as the head of the state.

Shah described the former chief minister Harish Rawat-led Congress government as a government of ”corruption and scams”.

He also challenged Rawat, who is contesting from Lalkuan assembly constituency in Nainital district, to show the infrastructure work done during his tenure.

The elections to the 70-member Uttarakhand Assembly will be held on February 14. The counting of votes will be taken up on March 10.