Last Ten Years' Work 'Appetiser', Main Dish Yet To Be Served, Exuding Confidence PM Modi Sets The Tone For Next Term

Sharpening his attack on the Congress at an election rally in Churu, Rajasthan, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday said that the country was in bad condition when the Opposition party was in power. He accused the Congress of insulting the Army and dividing people and, in his characteristic style, reiterated that the work done by his government in the last 10 years is “just an appetiser; the main course is still to come”.

Addressing the Churu rally, his second in Rajasthan in three days, in an apparent reference to counterstrikes in Pakistan, Mr Modi said, "Naya Bharat ghar mein ghus kar maarta hai."

“Today even the enemy knows that this is Modi. This is the new India,” he said.

Underscoring his government achievements in the last 10 years, the Prime Minister said, "No matter how much has happened, whatever has happened till now is a trailer. What Modi has done so far is just an appetiser. The main course is still to come. There is a lot to be done. There are a lot of dreams. We have to take the country far ahead.”

Attacking the Congress, Mr Modi accused that the country's economy had collapsed due to the Opposition party’s big scams and loot.

"The economy had collapsed due to the Congress' big scams and loot. India's reputation in the world was declining... Even after many decades of Independence, people were struggling for the basic necessities of life," he added.

"People thought that nothing could change; everyone was immersed in despair. In this despair and frustration, in 2014, you gave a chance to the son of the poor to serve you. Disappointment and frustration cannot come close to Modi. I decided that the situation has to change," the Prime Minister said, adding that India is his family.

The Prime Minister stressed that today, "Modi's guarantee" is being discussed in the country and Rajasthan is an example of how Modi's guarantees were fulfilled and at what speed.

"I gave a guarantee that cylinders for the poor will be cheaper; it has been fulfilled. An inquiry will be conducted against the Congress paper leak industry; it has been completed," Mr Modi said.

Addressing the rally, Mr Modi told the gathering that the former Congress government in the state had stalled the Eastern Rajasthan Canal Project but after the BJP came to power, not only has the project been approved, but work has also started on it.

"Whatever the BJP says, it fulfils. Unlike other parties, the BJP does not just issue 'Ghoshna Patra', it brings 'Sankalp Patra'. Most of the promises made in the BJP's 'Sankalp Patra' in 2019 have been kept,” he said.

Targeting the Opposition INDIA bloc, Mr Modi said that the people of the "Ghamandiya Gathbandhan" are not holding rallies for the election but to save the corrupt. "I say remove corruption; they say save corruption,” he added.

"The Congress and the INDIA bloc have their own interests. They have nothing to do with the welfare and respect of the poor, dalit and underprivileged. These are the same people who did not respect Baba Ambedkar," Mr Modi said.

"The Congress did not allow Bharat Ratna for Baba Saheb for decades. They imposed Emergency. The backward classes commission was not given constitutional status. Modi fulfilled the decades-old demand. The BJP gave the country its dalit and its tribal woman President," he said.

Mr Modi also attacked the Congress for its stand on the Ayodhya Ram temple issue. He said that the Congress has always prioritised appeasement over the country's interests. "The country has seen to what extent these people could go to please others. They said in court that Lord Shri Ram is imaginary," he said, adding that while the whole country was celebrating when the dream of a grand Ram temple in Ayodhya was fulfilled, the Congress was openly insulting faith.