24 November 2012, 01:25 PM IST
It is now a matter of few weeks before the people of Gujarat take part in the biggest festival of democracy, the elections. Over the past few months, I have had several opportunities to interact closely with many of you. Be it the Vivekananda Yuva Vikas Yatra, exchanging Nutan Varsh greetings or meeting party workers, I am glad to see a grand atmosphere of vibrancy and optimism across the length and breadth of Gujarat.
These new heights of development we have scaled would never have been possible without the political stability we have witnessed for more than a decade. Many of you must have seen the Gujarat where Governments did not last for long and there would be frequent games of musical chairs to capture power. All that is history now. The coherence as well as consistency in policy making has benefitted the people immensely. This political stability is nothing but a manifestation of the vision and farsightedness of the people of Gujarat, who have time again reposed their faith in development over everything else.
I am often asked this question- Modi ji what has been the most notable contribution of Gujarat in the last 11 years. You would expect me to say- we significantly reduced school drop out rates, gave a strong boost to girl child education, took the fruits of development to the Tribal areas of Gujarat, connected the poorest of the poor with technology, made Gujarat an industrial hub, witnessed record growth in agriculture etc.
But, for me the greatest contribution is something beyond this- it is the fact that over the years Gujarat has instilled a robust faith among the people in the political system and the institution of democracy, after it was systematically eroded by years of Congress rule in the decades after Independence.
Let me give you an example to illustrate my point. In the 1980s, former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi said that by the time a Rupee reaches the village, it becomes 15 paisa! This statement amazed me. When he made the comment, the Congress party's foothold in the nation's politics was complete- from the Panchayat till the Parliament they were everywhere and we were nowhere. So, what does this comment show – that the Congress is an expert at listing problems but when it comes to solutions we cannot expect anything.
Today, I am very proud of the fact that if a rupee leaves Gandhinagar, every single paisa reaches the intended beneficiary. Middlemen have long been reduced to a state of unemployment in Gujarat! This is just one of the reasons why people have developed immense faith in the system; with the same rules, same set up Gujarat has shown how it is possible to bring about a qualitative change in the life of the common man.
You would be surprised that even the allegations against us are, 'you built 350 schools instead of 500' or 'You promised 10 km roads but built only 8 km!' They are centered around development. But, can we say the same about our Congress friends? No! Nobody bothers to ask them about development. The only thing discussed is the number of scams and the ever increasing burden on the common man thanks to the absence of a Neta, Niti or Niyat in that Party.
Friends, the difference is fundamentally that of style of politics. The BJP is forever committed towards politics for development whereas the Congress is a dyed in the wool exponent of votebank politics. Remember how they divided brother from brother, friend from friend in Gujarat. Be it a Rath Yatra or a cricket match, curfew was all-prevalent in the state. Today, ask a child the meaning of curfew and he would not even know it- this is the difference over the last decade.
I keep saying this very often- if the Congress wants Gujarat, they must wholeheartedly embrace politics of development rather than votebank politics. Till then, the people of Gujarat having known them so well will never give them a chance to enter our soil.
Through the last many days, I am also meeting many of our Karyakartas and the joy in meeting these ever-passionate and motivated individuals is something words cannot describe! Our true strength is our Karyakartas and I congratulate them for the splendid work they are doing. I assure them that their efforts will not go in vain. We shall commence our march towards a Bhavya and Divya (glorious and divine) Gujarat from January 2013 and before that, we will celebrate another Diwali on 20thDecember 2012, one that will grander than ever before…
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Gujarat’s greatest gift – A politics built around development, stability and trust
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