PANAJI: Union home
minister
Amit
Shah
hit the campaign trail in Goa on Sunday and said Gandhi Parivar used the state only as a “tourist destination” and if Congress formed the government in the state, it would only be a “vacation spot for their leaders”.
He said
BJP aims at achieving former chief minister Manohar Parrikar’s dream of ‘Golden Goa’.
“For us (BJP), Goa means Golden Goa but for Congress, Goa means Gandhi Parivar ka Goa. Do you want Golden Goa or Gandhi Parivar ka Goa?” Shah said at a public meeting at the launch of the umbrella campaign for the assembly elections.
Goa will go to polls on February 14 to elect the 40-member House.
“Goa needs a ‘people first’ government and only BJP can provide such a government. Congress can also provide a government, but it will be ‘Parivar first’ government. If Congress forms the government, then Goa will become a tourist destination for their leaders,” Shah said, adding, “and if BJP forms the government, Goa will become a destination for tourists across the world. This is the difference.”
Shah, who addressed three public meetings at Ponda, Sanvordem and Vasco and held a door-to-door campaign at Sanvordem, also appealed to people to vote for BJP so that the party secures more than 22 seats and continues the fast pace of development in the state.
Paying rich tributes to Parrikar, Shah said Parrikar had laid a strong foundation for Goa’s development and chief minister Pramod Sawant was building edifices on it.
“Since the time BJP has formed the government in Goa, there has been political stability and development has taken place in Goa,” he said.
Lashing out at Congress, Shah said, “The Digambar Kamat-led Congress government was known for three As – avyavastha (indiscipline), asthirta (instability) and arajkta (anarchy) in addition to corruption. This had destroyed the beautiful Goa completely. Then BJP formed the government in Goa and the people of Goa gave us an opportunity to govern the state for 10 years and a new era of development started.
“I would like to ask Digambar Kamat what their plans for Goa are and when he speaks about these plans, also tell about what his government did when it was running the state.”
Shah said though Goa was a tiny speck on the map of India, but “it is like a beautiful bindi on Bharat Mata’s forehead”.
He also spelt out the benefits of having a “double engine” government and said while Congress had given an assistance of only Rs 432 crore in 2013-14, the Modi government in the last budget had allocated Rs 2,567 crore. “This is called commitment and magic of double engine government,” he said.
“It is Modi's policy that smaller the state, the requirement for development is more. This has been the biggest gift of the Modi government to Goa,” Shah said.
He said many infrastructure projects were possible only because of the Centre’s support. “It would not have been possible to construct projects like Atal Setu, Zuari bridge and Mopa international airport. It is only possible when there is a double engine government,” he said.
Stating that Rahul Gandhi is suffering from ‘Modi phobia’, Shah said, “Can Digambar Kamat implement any scheme if we send it from here? Rahul Baba will not let him do it. He will be scared that this will lead to Modi’s popularity. They are not bothered about Goa’s development because they have Modi phobia. He (Rahul) can only see Modi everywhere.”
Stating that the assembly elections will strengthen Modi’s hands, Shah said, “The upcoming election is also for making Goa prosperous, beautiful and a safer state.”
Stay updated with the latest news on Times of India. Don't miss daily games like Crossword, Sudoku, Location Guesser and Mini Crossword.