Assembly elections 2017: Modi sets the clock beyond 2019 in victory speech

PM on Sunday promised a 'new India' by 2022, when the country would mark 75 years of Independence

Setting the tone not only for the 2019 general elections but beyond it, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday said the results of Assembly polls in Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Manipur and Goa were a stepping stone to usher in a “new India” by 2022, when the country would mark 75 years of Independence. 

The PM called upon people to resolve to help shape an India which will be a land of opportunities and economic progress. “I see this victory as the foundation of a new India, where 65 per cent of the population will be of young people below 35 years of age... a new India of empowered women,” he said.

Addressing party workers at the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) national headquarters here at 11, Ashoka Road, after he was felicitated for leading the party to victory in UP and Uttarakhand, the PM advised workers to be humble in the party’s hour of triumph.

Amid chants of “Modi, Modi”, the PM said the significance of the election results was that the poorest had voted for development. The PM spoke about welfare of the poor and indicated that his party having won UP, his government was set to focus on job growth. The poor, Modi said, didn’t need charity or doles but opportunities. He said if the poor progressed, the burden on the middle class, particularly that of tax, would reduce.

The PM didn’t specifically mention demonetisation but said he would reiterate something he had said after the 2014 Lok Sabha win at the same venue. “I had then said that we are new and inexperienced. We might make mistakes but it will never be because of bad intent,” he said. The PM said he had also promised to work hard: “I am glad here is a PM who is asked why he works so hard.”

Modi also spoke of inclusivity. He said the BJP government in UP would belong not just to those who voted for the party but also to those who didn’t.

The PM termed the recent elections a landmark, as they were not fought on any emotional issue but that of development.

Speaking earlier, BJP chief Amit Shah credited the electoral win to the Modi government’s pro-poor policies and the respect the poor across India had for him. Shah said the BJP was sure to win the coming Assembly polls in Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh and Karnataka, and return in 2019 with a mandate bigger than that of 2014. Earlier in the day, on his website narendramodi.in, the Prime Minister stated, “India is transforming, powered by the strength of each and every citizen of India; an India that is driven by innovation, hard work and creativity; an India characterised by peace, unity and brotherhood; and an India free from corruption, terrorism, black money and dirt.”

Modi said he wanted the countrymen to pledge that they would stand for a corruption-free India, undertake cashless transactions, dedicatedly work towards a “Swachh Bharat”, ensure a drugs-free India, and be job creators, not job seekers.

The PM later attended the BJP parliamentary board meeting to assess the Assembly election results and discuss the choice of chief ministers for states, including UP and Uttarakhand. The BJP also staked claims to form the government in Manipur and Goa.

The PM displayed statesmanship as he tried to leave behind the fractious election campaign and said a BJP government in Uttar Pradesh would represent all its people, including those who fought against the party and those who didn’t vote for it. Of the 403 seats in UP, the BJP hadn’t fielded even one candidate from the Muslim community, which comprises a fifth of the state’s population. However, the PM didn’t specifically refer to any community or political rivals.

Modi said it was rare in India’s political history for such huge voter turnouts in an election that was bereft of any emotional issues. Such a huge mandate, as the one the BJP received in UP, was not because of a “wave” on any emotional issue but on his government’s development agenda, he added. “Rarely a political party in the last 50 years fought an election on the issue of development,” the PM said. 

Modi said the voter turnout and the election results merited a deeper analysis where the poorest had voted for vikas, or development. “I have witnessed a new India, of the 65 per cent who are below 35 years of age, in the election results of these five states, and particularly UP,” said the PM, who walked several metres to the BJP office waving at supporters. He said this “new India” was of the youth and women. He said the electoral victories were significant as these had come in the birth centenary year of Jana Sangh ideologue Deen Dayal Upadhyaya, whose talisman of antyodaya, or the welfare of the poorest, shouldn’t be forgotten.

The PM said he understood the aspiration of the poor, and the need to educate these and give opportunities to them. The PM said the middle class in India bore the burden of society, including taxes and the need to conform to laws. “All that the middle classes desire was obstacles in their path to achieve their potential be removed. Once the poor can carry their burden, the middle class will see the burden that it feels on its shoulders will get lighter,” the PM said. The PM said the current electoral victories marked the golden era of the BJP. He remembered the contributions of senior leaders like Atal Bihari Vajpayee, L K Advani, K Jana Krishnamurthi and Kushabhau Thakre. Modi congratulated BJP chief Amit Shah on the electoral victories.