Vote for good 'malis' who will watch over your garden: J P Nadda in HP

Rampur (HP): BJP president J P Nadda urged the voters of Himachal Pradesh on Monday to exercise their franchise in the November 12 Assembly polls with their future in mind and not on the basis of emotions, urging them to opt for good "malis" to watch over their gardens.

Addressing a public meeting in Rampur in favour of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) candidate Kaul Singh, Nadda said Singh has protected the people's interests in the region despite losing the last Assembly poll contest.

He said Singh has remained a good "chowkidar" (guard) all these years.

Nadda accused the Congress of trying to confuse the voters on a range of issues, saying "those who have nothing to show always tend to confuse the voters and undermine the democratic process".

The BJP chief said the Congress is trying to seek votes in the name of a family, which shows that it has not done anything and is standing on crutches.

"Do not take decisions based on emotions, keep your future in mind," he said.

Noting that Singh remained a good "chowkidar" to safeguard people's interests even though he lost the last election, Nadda urged the voters to find good "chowkidars" and "malis" (gardeners) like him.

"If you do not have a good mali, your farm will be destroyed," he said.

Lauding Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Nadda said under him, India has come to a position from where it can give to other countries instead of taking from them.

He also raised the issue of tackling COVID-19 by securing the citizens of the country.

India has given anti-Covid vaccines to 48 countries and Himachal Pradesh was the first state to achieve 100-per cent vaccination against the viral disease under Chief Minister Jairam Thakur, the BJP chief noted.

He said India, which imported SIM cards once, is now exporting those and has emerged as the second largest producer of mobile phones.

"When countries across the world are fighting to survive after the Ukraine war, India has pushed aside Britain as the fifth largest economy in the world," Nadda said.

He said Modi's love for Himachal Pradesh is unprecedented as is evident from the fact that the face of the state has changed in the last five years.

"We have given to Himachal not only what we had promised, but also what we had not promised and this includes an AIIMS," the BJP chief said while also talking about the Indian Institute of Management (IIM), the Indian Institute of Technology IIT, the first hydro-engineering college of the state, the Rs 2,000-crore bulk drugs park and the medical technologies park.

"We need a double-engine government -- Modiji's government in Delhi and the Jairam government in Himachal -- and to ensure that we need Kaul Singh to be elected from Rampur," he said.

"Whenever there is a single engine, the train wobbles," Nadda said, citing the 10-km Atal tunnel, the work on which was stalled under the Congress government led by former prime minister Manmohan Singh.

The Cabinet Committee on Security gave its clearance for the railway line to Leh in 2015, but the Congress government in Himachal Pradesh did not help acquire land for it, he said, adding that the rail line will reach Bilaspur by 2024 under Modi's leadership.

"A double-engine government has its own importance. This vote is not just to make Kaul Singh an MLA but to fight for your rights. You need to help the BJP win for your own future," Nadda said, lauding the prime minister for providing 12 crore "izzat ghars" (toilets) in the country, including 1.9 lakh in Himachal.

Noting that the prime minister also gave nine crore gas cylinders and chullahs to the people of the country, he claimed that there is no house in Himachal Pradesh now where food is cooked on wood, asserting that this is women empowerment.