Rahul shows up as ‘non-Hindu’ in Somnath visitors’ list; BJP rakes up issue

The BJP tried to make an issue of this faux pas, pouncing on this opportunity to corner the Gandhi scion.

Rahul Gandhi at Somnath Temple : In a major goof-up, the media coordinator of Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday wrote “non-Hindu” against the name of the Congress Vice President in the register of the famed Somnath temple, leading the BJP to pounce on it as evidence that Gandhi is “not a Hindu”.

Rahul Gandhi’s media coordinator Manoj Tyagi later clarified that he had entered the Congress leader’s name in the register as a means to take along his entire delegation inside that included security personnel and media persons.

The Congress Vice President, who arrived on Wednesday on a two-day visit to the poll-bound state of Gujarat, was to pay a visit to the temple for prayers before beginning his election campaign in Saurashtra region.

Ahead of the visit, Manoj Tyagi made an entry in the register for Ahmed Patel, a non-Hindu, who was to accompany the Congress Vice President inside the temple and also wrote the name of Rahul Gandhi in the register.

The BJP tried to make an issue of this faux pas, pouncing on this opportunity to corner the Gandhi scion.

The saffron party is worried about the soft Hindutva line that Rahul Gandhi has been following in his several visits to the state, which are being seen as a successful tactic in the election-bound state.

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PM Modi continues BJP blitz in Gujarat today: Here’s what to expect

During this current leg of his party’s poll campaign, the Prime Minister will visit poll-bound Gujarat on November 27 and 29

Narendra Modi Gujarat Visit : Prime Minister Narendra Modi will on Monday continue the Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP’s) Gujarat campaign blitz with a rally in Bhuj. This will be followed by several public meetings in Kutch, Jasdan, Dhari, and Kamrej.

PM Modi is expected to attend at least 20 public meetings and rallies in the next 15 days ahead of the Assembly polls to be held on December 9 and 14.

During this current leg of his party’s poll campaign, the Prime Minister will visit poll-bound Gujarat on November 27 and 29.

Here are the things to look out for during PM Modi’s Gujarat visit:

On Monday, he is scheduled to visit Kutch and Saurashtra region to address four public meetings ahead of the December 9 and 14 elections. (Read more here)

He will arrive in Bhuj on Monday morning to address a public gathering at R R Lalan College’s ground at around 9 am.

“Tomorrow I begin my rallies across Gujarat. My first rally will be in Bhuj, Kutch. This district is close to my heart. Its spirit of resilience after the 2001 quake was seen by the world. Since then, Kutch has seen record progress, which has benefited all sections of society,” Modi tweeted on Sunday.

Thereafter, he will visit Saurashtra region’s Jasdan and address a public meeting at Vichhiya Road at 11 am.

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Vote for BJP, save Gujarat from casteism: Modi’s written message to voters

Modi said a young person of 22-25 years cannot even imagine what Gujarat was in the past when casteism and communalism 'destroyed' it

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday urged the people of Gujarat to vote for the BJP in the Gujarat Assembly Polls 2017 embracing its development agenda, and save the state by rejecting "casteism, communalism and dynastic politics".

On the first day of the BJP's door-to-door outreach drive - Gujarat Gaurav Maha-Sampark Abhiyan - BJP workers and leaders, including its president Amit Shah, distributed copies of Modi's message-cum-appeal among people.

In the written message addressed to the people of Gujarat, Modi urged them to remember what the state was before the BJP assumed power in 1995, and appealed to them to vote for his party to carry forward the "journey of development" that began 22 years back.

"Just compare what was Gujarat 22 years back and what it is now. Thanks to the good governance of the BJP governments, Gujarat has reached new heights of development, so much so that it is now known across the world," he said in the message.

Modi said a young person of 22-25 years cannot even imagine what Gujarat was in the past when casteism and communalism "destroyed" it.

"Now, some power-hungry elements are playing the same dirty game. Now, it is our collective responsibility to save Gujarat from the evils of casteism, communalism and dynastic politics," the message read.

Modi also slammed the Congress-led UPA governments, accusing them of having stalled the Narmada project.

The prime minister said though the Congress-led central governments were not favorable to Gujarat, the state continued its journey of development.

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Modi flags off Run for Unity: The importance of Sardar Patel and ‘nationalist’ narrative for BJP in Gujarat

The memory of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel is set to be evoked frequently in the days to come in Gujarat. The state polls on December 9 and 14.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday flaggedoff the ‘Run for Unity’ from the Major Dhyan Chand National Stadium, near India Gate.

Similar ‘runs’ have been organised across the country to mark the 142nd birth anniversary of India’s first home minister Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel.

"Some people tried to ensure the contribution of Sardar Patel is forgotten," PM Modi said.

"We remember Sardar Patel on his birth anniversary. We are proud of his contribution to India before we attained freedom and during the early years after we became independent," he said at the Dhyan Chand stadium in the national capital before flagging off the 'Run for Unity' event.

In Gujarat, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) launched a WhatsApp campaign on Monday to highlight the “insults” allegedly meted out by the Nehru-Gandhi family to two sons of Gujarat – Sardar Vallabhbai Patel and Morarji Desai.

The social media campaign accuses the Nehru-Gandhi family of “insulting” Gujarati ‘asmita’, or pride. It says Patel, the first home minister of independent India and deputy prime minister, wasn’t accorded a memorial in New Delhi.

The WhatsApp forward claims Patel was stopped from becoming the first prime minister of India, that he wasn’t conferred the ‘Bharat Ratna’ by any of the Congress governments or his birth centenary celebrated.

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Narendra Modi to deliver his last speech before Gujarat polls in Gandhinagar today

As many as 10,000 party workers have been involved in making the public meeting a success

 

 

Likely to be his last speech at a big public rally before the Election Commission’s model code of conduct kicks in for Gujarat Elections, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will address a massive public meeting in Gandhinagar on Monday.

In a series of tweets on Sunday evening, the PM set the stage for the ‘Gujarat Gaurav Mahasammelan’, or Gujarat pride mega-congregation. A BJP press statement on Sunday evening attempted to underline the importance of the event. It said as many as 10,000 party workers have been involved in making the public meeting a success.

The public meeting comes on the heels of the Gujarat government announcing a series of sops. While it isn’t known if the PM might make more announcements, Congress spokesperson Randeep Singh Surjewala had complained on Thursday that the Election Commission postponed announcing the Gujarat poll dates to enable Modi to announce more sops at the Monday rally.



The BJP statement said Modi, party chief Amit Shah, Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani and other leaders will address the public meeting. It said the public meeting will sound the BJP’s bugle for the assembly poll. “This is development, this is Gujarat,” will be the statement that would resound at the public meeting. It said 26 entry gates have been erected for the public rally, and seating arrangements made in 72 blocks. The venue will also have 15 parking lots.

In his tweets, the PM said: “Tomorrow in Gandhinagar, I will join Gujarat Gaurav Mahasammelan, which will bring together lakhs of BJP Karyakartas from across Gujarat. Gujarat Gaurav Mahasammelan comes after the successful culmination of the two Gujarat Gaurav Yatras.”

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