Of, By And For Family is Opposition Mantra: Modi

New Delhi: As the Opposition parties met to discuss their strategy for the 2024 Lok Sabha polls in Bengaluru, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday launched a stinging attack against the rival block leaders, alleging that their mantra is "of, by and for the family". Speaking after virtually inaugurating the new integrated terminal building of the Veer Savarkar Airport in Port Blair, Mr Modi termed the Opposition parties Bengaluru meet as "kattar hhrashtachar sammelan" (hardcore corruption convention).

Referring to the Opposition parties meeting, the Prime Minister said that people are saying that this gathering is to promote "bhrashtachar". He alleged that the Opposition parties have given a "clean chit" to the DMK despite corruption cases in Tamil Nadu.

Hitting out at the 26 Opposition parties attending the meeting in Bengaluru, the Prime Minister pointed out that the Left and the Congress are silent on the panchayat poll violence in West Bengal despite attacks on their cadre.

"Seeing these Opposition leaders in one frame, people are calling the frame a symbol of corruption and the Bengaluru meeting a kattar bhrashtachar sammelan," Mr Modi said.

The Prime Minister said that the Opposition parties are not concerned about the development of the children of the country's poor and their common minimum programme is to create more corruption opportunities for their families.

"Democracy means 'of the people, by the people, for the people'. But these dynastic parties' mantra is 'of the family, by the family, for the family'. For them, their family is first, and the nation is nothing," he said.

The Prime Minister noted that India could have developed more after Independence but did not due to corruption and dynastic politics.

"Those responsible for this 'badhaali' (plight) have now again opened their shops to sell the poison of casteism and indulge in corruption. Their product is a ₹20 lakh crores scam guarantee. To gain entry to these shops, one must be corrupt. In their shops, they prefer corrupt people as their 'margdarshak' (mentors)," Mr Modi said.

Talking about the airport, the Prime Minister informed the audience that, till now, the existing terminal had the capacity to handle 4,000 tourists. The new terminal has taken this number to 11,000 and 10 planes can be parked at any given time on the airport now.

"More flights and tourists will bring more jobs to the area. Port Blair’s new terminal building will increase ease of travel, ease of doing business and connectivity," he said.

Pointing out that the adivasi and island regions of the country were devoid of development for a long time, the Prime Minister said, "The scope of development was limited to only big cities for a long time in India. In the last nine years, the present government has not only rectified the mistakes of the governments of the past with utmost sensitivity but also come up with a new system. A new model of development for inclusion has emerged in India. The model is 'Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas’," the Prime Minister said.

The Prime Minister explained that the present government's model of development is comprehensive and includes the development of every region and every section of society, as well as every aspect of life such as education, health and connectivity.

The Prime Minister noted that in the last nine years, a new story of development has been written in Andaman.

The Prime Minister pointed out that this expansion of facilities is giving momentum to tourism on the islands. "Mobile connectivity, health infrastructure, airport facilities and roads promote the arrival of tourists. That is why tourist footfall has doubled as compared to 2014. Adventure tourism is also thriving and the numbers will rise manifold in the coming years," Mr Modi said.

He mentioned that Andaman is becoming a living and breathing example of the "maha mantra" of development and heritage going hand in hand.

The Prime Minister noted that even though the ‘Tiranga’ (Tricolour) was hoisted in Andaman way before it was hoisted at the Red Fort, one could only find signs of slavery on the island.

The Prime Minister highlighted that it was the present government that renamed Ross Island as Netaji Subhas Island, Havelock Island as Swaraj Island and Neil Island as Shaheed Island. He also touched upon renaming the 21 islands after the Param Vir Chakra awardees. "The development of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands has become a source of inspiration for the youth of the country," the Prime Minister added.