Saints to lead Mission Modi Again'

Lucknow: A campaign called “Mission Modi Again” is being launched in 350 Lok Sabha constituencies by an organisation of the same name. Former BJP MP Ram Vilas Vedanti will lead the “Mission Modi Again” and the organisation’s working president Ram Gopal Kaka said the campaign would begin from October 24.

A three-day “anushthan” (ritual) will be held in Ayodhya before the mission begins. All prominent saints and seers will flag off the campaign. “The ‘Mission Modi Again’ campaign will continue for 108 days and will tour Lok Sabha constituencies in eight states — Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Rajasthan, Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand,” said Mr Kaka.

The maximum number of six to eight meetings in the campaign will be held in Varanasi, which is Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s parliamentary constituency. Jagadguru Rambhadr-acharya, Swami Vasude-vanand Saraswati and other prominent saints and seers will address these meetings in which they will underline the need for giving Mr Modi another term in government. The saints will also highlight the work done by the Modi government and the qualitative difference brought at the ground level.

The state head of the campaign, Raghaveshwar Das, said that 108 vehicles would be a part of the campaign where over 500 people will participate. “We will also hold ‘anushthan’ in every constituency where we travel and pray for the success of the BJP in the elections,” he said. This will be the first time that saints will be campaigning for the Prime Minister, in particular, and the BJP, in general. Till now, the saints and seers have extended their support and conferred their blessings on the BJP but have avoided actually campaigning for the party.

Talking to this correspondent, one of the seers said, “We have taken the decision to campaign this time because of the manner in which all parties are attacking the Prime Minister and the BJP. We feel that it is time for us to come out and campaign or forces that protect Hindutva.” Political observers, meanwhile, feel that this campaign by saints will, once again, push development on the backburner and communalise the campaign. “The campaign is an attempt to polarise voters on communal lines and this is what the BJP wants,” said a senior journalist.