Mandir, Kashmir, reservation dominate Shah rallies in Jharkhand

RANCHI/LOHARDAGA: Setting the tone for the party's campaign in Jharkhand in its first big rally nine days before the first phase of polling, BJP national president and home minister Amit Shah accused Congress of blocking the construction of the Ram temple in Ayodhya and credited Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the Supreme Court's historic verdict earlier this month.

Addressing a large gathering at Manika in Latehar district about 100km from Ranchi in the first of his two public meetings on Thursday, Shah asked, " Ayodhya mein Ram mandir banna chahiye ke nahi chahiye (Should a Ram temple be built in Ayodhya or not)?" As the audience, led by BJP workers, responded to the question with a roar of 'Jai Shri Ram', Shah added in Hindi, "Congress was not allowing the case be heard continuously. Now, the Supreme Court has delivered a historic verdict, paving the way for a grand temple touching the sky on Ramjanmabhoomi. Modiji is solving all the problems pending in the country one by one."

Shah went on to remind the people about the Modi government's "historic" decision to abrogate Article 370 and 35A, revoking special status to Jammu and Kashmir, and bifurcating the state into two Union territories. "Congress allowed the Kashmir problem to continue for 70 years for its vote bank. The Modi government has wiped the blot off the crown of the country by abrogating these Articles," he said.

Latehar is an SC-reserved seat and Shah struck the chord with young voters as he addressed the youngsters as " mere jigar ke tukde yuva mitron (my most beloved young friends)". Coming to local issues, Shah said the government will form a central commission for reservation to extend maximum benefits to youth from backward castes. "We formed the OBC commission to give due respect to the backward castes. Now, to extend benefits of reservation to the youth, we will form a commission to provide them with jobs. We look at it as an opportunity to ensure financial security for the youth of a particular class that remained backward even after 70 years of Congress rule," he said.

With chief minister Raghubar Das and BJP's Manika candidate Raghupal Singh and Latehar nominee Prakash Ram by his side, Shah, the BJP chief continued to attack Congress, ridiculing the budget allocated to Jharkhand by the regimes in the past. "In the 13th Finance Commission, the Sonia-Manmohan government provided just Rs 55,253 crore for the development of Jharkhand. The Modi government has given Rs 3,08,487 crore, six times the amount, to the state for vikas," he said, reading out a detailed chart of schemes under which the money has been allocated.

Shah enumerated the work carried out by the Raghubar Das government in Latehar, particularly Manika. "An 80km road has been built to connect Mahuadar block to the district headquarters. In this assembly segment alone, 554km of roads have been constructed for Rs 300 crore and more than 1,675km 11kV transmission line have been installed. I challenge Congress to come up with its details of expenses in any assembly segment and compare it with ours," he said. He also lauded the state government for addressing the Maoist issue in the area.

Shah also invoked nationalist sentiments by remembering the Jharkhand's freedom fighters - Nilambar Pitambar, Chand Bhairav and Birsa Munda . He also paid homage to son of the soil Lieutenant Anurag Shukla and Gumla soldier Vijay Soreng who were martyred while serving to the nation. While Soreng was killed in the terror attack on an Army convoy in Pulwama in February, Lt Shukla died in April while saving three of his colleagues from drowning at a training camp in Jaisalmer.

Taking on Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM), the main opposition party in the state, Shah asked the people to understand that the tribal outfit has entered an alliance with the same Congress that believed in plundering the resources of Jharkhand. "I want to ask Hemant Soren (former CM and JMM working president) what made him stand with the party that did nothing for the state in the 70 years of its rule at the Centre," he said. He also reminded the people that it was BJP and former PM Atal Bihari Vajpayee who pioneered the formation of Jharkhand, a decision that Congress was against.

Addressing his second rally in Lohardag later in the daya, Shah promised to set up a commission to review reservations for OBCs in Jharkhand if the party is voted back to power. Without naming any party, Shah said, "If BJP is voted back to power in Jharkhand with full majority, we will set up a commission to review reservation based on population for OBCs and work towards the cause."

The focus on OBCs, political observes said, is a clear attempt to woo the party's estranged ally Ajsu Party's vote bank. After disagreements over seat-sharing, Ajsu Party decided to field candidates against its senior partner and promised to hike reservations for OBCs to 27% in its manifesto.

Lohardaga, a seat reserved for Scheduled Tribe (ST), is a bone of contention contentious between the bickering allies. BJP has fielded Congress turncoat and sitting MLA Sukhdeo Bhagat while Ajsu Party has named Niru Bhagat. The two are up against state Congress president Rameshwar Oraon .

In his 40-minute speech before 10,000-odd people at Lohardaga's sprawling BS College grounds, Shah was unsparing in attacking Congress and JMM on how the decades of misrule by the former led to massive corruption and scams and by siding with them, JMM too has shown its true colours. Accompanied by BJP candidates Misir Kujur (Gumla constituency), Sukhdeo Bhagat (Lohardaga) and Ashok Oraon (Bishunpur) and chief minister Raghubar Das, Shah continued to attack Congress over Ayodhya and Kashmir issues.

Recalling the 2014 assembly elections, Shah said that BJP had launched its successful poll campaign at the same venue. "This place produces a kind of metal that does not rust for years. You must ensure that you form a government that wont rust in five years. Press the lotus button so hard that the echoes are heard in Italy," Shah said.

Applauding CM Das government, Shah cited how a "garib ka beta" led from the front to end naxalism and bring development to Jharkhand. "Such progress was not possible earlier because of unstable governments. In 2014, we set out on a path to development when we installed a poor labourer's son as the CM. He worked tirelessly to free the state from naxal and bring in development," he said. Both Manika and Latehar constituencies will vote in the first leg of the five-phase polls on Novemeber 30. The results are scheduled be declared on December 23.