New Delhi, May 4 (PTI) As the BJP swept the assembly elections in West Bengal for the first time, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday said the state has been finally freed from fear and that it is a time for change, not revenge, as he appealed to all parties to shun the culture of political violence and focus on the future of the state.
Addressing the jubilant party workers at the BJP headquarters after the win in assembly elections in West Bengal, Assam and Puducherry, Modi said the Congress, TMC and others have been punished severely for opposing the recent women’s reservation bill. He asserted that the Samajwadi Party will also face the wrath of women very soon, in an apparent reference to the 2027 assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh.
In his nearly 50-minute speech, the prime minister said the elections in West Bengal have been special this year, as earlier they were marred by violence, fear and the death of innocent people.
But this time the news was different as peaceful voting took place in West Bengal and for the first time, no one lost their life during voting, he said.
“As Bengal enters a new phase of change, I also want to make an earnest appeal to every political party in Bengal. Over the past decades in Bengal, countless lives have been ruined due to political violence. I firmly believe that this election culture of Bengal must change from today onwards.
“Aaj jab BJP jeeti hai, toh badla nahi, badlav ki baat honi chahiye; bhay nahi, ‘bhavishya’ ki baat honi chahiye (Today, when the BJP has won, the talk should not be of revenge, but of change; not of fear, but of the future),” he said and urged the parties to end the vicious circle of violence.
Modi said it was a special day in many ways as it heralds a bright future for the country.
“It is a day of trust in the great democracy of India, trust in the politics of performance, trust in the resolve of stability, trust in the spirit of Ek Bharat, Shrestha Bharat.
“I bow before the people of West Bengal, Assam, Puducherry, Tamil Nadu and Keralam,” he said at the victory celebration event where BJP President Nitin Nabin, Union ministers Amit Shah and Rajnath Singh, among others, were present.
Modi said on November 14 last year, when the Bihar election results came in, he told the BJP workers from this very spot that the Ganga flows onward from Bihar all the way to Ganga Sagar (in West Bengal).
“And today, with victory in West Bengal, from Gangotri (Uttarakhand) to Ganga Sagar (West Bengal), it is nothing but the lotus in full bloom.
Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, and West Bengal today, in these states surrounding Mother Ganga, there are BJP-NDA governments,” he said.
The prime minister said winning and losing are a natural part of democracy and politics, but the people of the five states have shown the world why the country is the mother of democracy.
He said women’s participation in this election has been exceptionally high and this is emerging as the brightest picture of Indian democracy.
“Women power is now rapidly progressing towards building a developed India. However, a few days ago, the Congress and its allies blocked this momentum of women’s power.
“These anti-women parties prevented the amendment to the Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam from being passed in Parliament. That is why I said a few days ago that parties opposing the women’s reservation bill will have to face the wrath of women. Today, sisters and daughters have punished the Congress, TMC, and DMK,” he said.
Modi said the Congress has certainly benefited from the 10 years of misrule by the Left in Kerala, but expressed confidence that the “mothers and sisters of Kerala will also definitely teach the Congress a lesson in the next elections”.
“The Samajwadi Party, which has blocked women’s reservation in Parliament, will also have to face the opposition of the women of Uttar Pradesh. No matter what the anti-women Samajwadi Party does, it will never be able to wash away its sins,” he said.
Referring to Assam, the prime minister said that along with the river Ganga, the Brahmaputra has also showered immense blessings upon the BJP, and the blessings of Maa Kamakhya have been with the party.
“The people of Assam have trusted the BJP-NDA for the third consecutive time,” he said.
Modi said that in 2021, the NDA put forward the vision of BEST Puducherry. The people of Puducherry trusted in the vision and blessed the alliance.
“I want to assure the youth and fishermen of Puducherry that we will keep working for your bright future. The prosperity of Puducherry is our resolve,” he said.
The prime minister said the BJP-NDA governments are in power in more than 20 states of the country.
“Our mantra is ‘citizen is god’. We are dedicated to serving the people; therefore, the people are placing more and more trust in the BJP. The people are clearly seeing that where there is BJP, there is good governance. Where there is BJP, there is development,” he said.
PM Modi said that with the BJP’s victory in West Bengal, the soul of Jan Sangh founder Syama Prasad Mookerjee must be at peace now.
“I respectfully bow to the people of Bengal, the people of Assam, the people of Puducherry, and the people of Tamil Nadu and Kerala today; I salute them all. Today, I also heartily congratulate the countless workers of the BJP.
“Every small and big worker of the BJP has once again performed a miracle, has made the lotus bloom. You have created a new history,” he said.
After his speech, the prime minister held a meeting at the BJP headquarters with Nabin, Shah, Singh and former party chief JP Nadda. PTI ASK NAB ACB BJ RT
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