Congress 'enemy' of development: Modi

Chambi/Sujanpur (HP): Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday pitched the Himachal Pradesh poll battle as between the "enemy of development" Congress and the "pro-development" BJP, stressing that people will get "double benefits" if his party is re-elected as he will be able to work more for them.

Addressing his last of the four poll meetings in the hill state at Sujanpur in Hamirpur district, he accused the Congress of "betraying" the people of Himachal and obstructing its development when it ran the government here till 2017 after he took office as prime minister in 2014. If the Congress comes to power in the state, it will not allow his government to work, Modi claimed. He said he can do much more for Himachal if people "anukul" (favourable) to him are in power here and asked them to break the convention of voting out incumbent governments to ensure the state's development. "Congress by nature is an enemy of development. It is the BJP that can take Himachal to new heights of development. Therefore, it is necessary for the BJP government to retain power... It is a straight calculation. A BJP government should be formed in Himachal so that it can benefit from Delhi (the central government). It will bring double benefits," he told people at a rally in Sujanpur in Hamirpur district.

Modi spoke about his familiarity with Himachal Pradesh, a highlight of all his addresses at rallies after the assembly poll announcement and said as someone aware of issues and people here, he will be able to work for the state while being in Delhi. He listed several measures for its progress after the BJP government under Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur was elected in 2017. The prime minister launched a sharp attack on the main opposition party and linked it with "instability, corruption and scam" at his first rally in Chambi in Kangra district, which has the largest number of assembly seats in the state, and asserted that Himachal needs a stable and strong government of "double engine".