Hours after BJP's #MainBhiChowkidar campaign gained momentum with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and other party leaders, including president Amit Shah, prefixing the word 'chowkidar' to their names in their Twitter profile, the PM thanked and urged people to continue with the movement.
He tweeted, "Fellow Indians, Happy that #MainBhiChowkidar has ignited the Chowkidar within all of us. Great fervour! Ecstatic to see the passion and commitment to protect India from corrupt, criminal and anti-social elements. Let us keep working together for a developed India."
Modi also retweeted tweets of various people who used the hashtag #MainBhiChowkidaar in order to show their support to the campaign.
Ministers, BJP supporters and many others have put 'chowkidar' before their name on Twitter as a mark of support.
A day after kick-starting the 'Main Bhi Chowkidar' campaign ahead of crucial Lok Sabha polls, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday renamed his Twitter account to "Chowkidar Narendra Modi".
Soon after, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) president Amit Shah also renamed his Twitter handle to "Chowkidar Amit Shah".
Following the footsteps of their leaders, Union Ministers Piyush Goyal, Jagat Prakash Nadda, Harsh Vardhan and Dharmendra Pradhan added the prefix "Chowkidar" to their Twitter handles.
On Saturday, the Prime Minister had tweeted a video showing how all Indians are chowkidars while flagging off the BJP's poll campaign.
"Your Chowkidar is standing firm & serving the nation. But, I am not alone. Everyone who is fighting corruption, dirt, social evils is a Chowkidar. Everyone working hard for the progress of India is a Chowkidar. Today, every Indian is saying-#MainBhiChowkidar," he tweeted.
Meanwhile, opposition Congress leaders hit out at the BJP's chowkidar campaign. Congress president Rahul Gandhi on Sunday said the 'truth cannot be extinguished' and the prefix is 'looking bad.'
"You can keep trying Mr Modi, but the truth cannot be extinguished. Every Indian is saying it. #ChowkidarChorHai P.S: Do force Sushma ji to add "Chowkidar" to her handle. It's looking very bad," Gandhi posted on twitter.
Congress general secretary in-charge of western Uttar Pradesh Jyotiraditya Scindia asked who would save the country if 'Chowkidars' are like him. Former Finance Minister tweeted "Main bhi chowkidar because the chowkidar I had appointed is missing. I am told he has gone looking for achhe din."
Congress had been attacking the government and PM Modi with its "Chowkidarchor hai" slogan.
SP leader Akhilesh Yadav too hit out at the BJP and in a tweet in hindi said, "It's easy to call yourself watchman on social media. But one should listen to the voice of the youth who are not able to get jobs, and doing chowkidari. 'MainBhiChowkidar' is a disrespect to farmers who are forced tot toil overnight on their farms The country does not need a 'prachar' minister but a prime minister, the former UP chief minister posted.
The origin of the word 'chowkidar' dates back to the poll campaigning ahead of the 2014 general elections when Modi had promised to work as a 'chowkidar' to guard the people's money and their trust once elected to the top office.
'Main Bhi Chowkidar' has been started after extensive surveys and data analysis by BJP strategists who feel that Congress president Rahul Gandhi's 'chowkidar chor hai' jibe and campaign is not resonating among people. The surveys also suggested that it is actually angering people in the country, according to a release.
This campaign is expected to drive the narrative of the Prime Minister's strong and decisive image which multiple surveys have conveyed is the main factor in the upcoming elections, the release mentioned.
Under the aegis of this campaign, the BJP has leveraged a tech innovation called conversation cards on Twitter, whereby people will get a personalized message from the Prime Minister on Twitter on participating in this campaign.
Prime Minister Modi is slated to interact with people from across the country on March 31 as a part of this campaign.
Disclaimer: No Business Standard Journalist was involved in creation of this content
