On the fourth anniversary of the BJP-led NDA government today, Prime Minister Narendra Modi mocked opposition parties over their unity efforts saying his drive against corruption has brought them together while party chief Amit Shah asserted that its return to power in 2019 is nota challenge but a certainty.
As the top two ruling party leaders went all out to highlight the government's achievements and mock their rivals, the opposition launched a scathing attack against the dispensation with the Congress releasing a booklet 'India betrayed' and alleging that Modi and Shah were harmful for the country.
Modi addressed a rally to mark the anniversary of his government and chose Odisha, a state high on his party's agenda for the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, people have a stamp of its approval on his dispensation's work by electing the BJP to power in a number of states.
He said his government's fight against corruption has sent "shivers down the spines of many who have come on one platform", a reference to opposition parties which have been in talks to put up a united fight against the ruling alliance.
At the rally in Cuttack, the prime minister said his government is moving on the correct path and people have put their seal of approval on it as he noted that his party is in power in 20 states.
It shows that people have endorsed the NDA's performance in the last four years, he said.
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The country is moving towards "susashan" (good governance) from "kusashan" (bad governance) and towards "jandhan" (public money) from "kaladhan" (black money), he said and claiming that the Congress is always driven by power.
Shah addressed a press conference in the national capital to reel out figures to highlight the government's achievements.
He claimed that Modi has been working to remove corruption and poverty while accusing the opposition of having a single-point Modi hatao' (remove Modi) agenda.
He listed details of its "successes" and heaped scorn on the likely challenge from Rahul Gandhi-led Congress, saying he may have declared himself a prime ministerial candidate but his bid has not got the support from even his party colleagues, let alone other opposition leaders.
Projecting Modi as the "most popular and most hardworking prime minister with unending energy", Shah said he replaced the UPA's "policy paralysis" with a "policy-driven" government working for the poor and an improved economy.
The prime minister has also raised the country's esteem in the world, he said.
As Shah went hard at them, Congress leaders hit back with Ghulam Nabi Azad, Ashok Gehlot and Randeep Surjewala claiming that an atmosphere of fear and hatred has been created under the BJP-led NDA rule.
"People now know that Modi-Amit Shah duo is harmful for the country. Four years of the Modi government can be defined in four terms -- treachery, trickery, revenge and lies," AICC communication's in-charge Surjewala said.
Referring to alleged atrocities on Dalits, tribals, minorities and women, Azad, the Leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha, said, "Nobody is safe in India under the BJP government. Everyone is getting sleepless nights."
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