DALU: Union Minister Smriti Zubeen Irani has accused the Congress government in Meghalaya of deliberately creating obstacles to prevent central schemes from reaching the people and called on the voters to dislodge the Mukul Sangma government by voting for the BJP during the February 27 elections.
The senior minister in the Narendra Modi government, who became famous with the television series Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi, landed at Dalu border town on Saturday morning to rally for party candidate and GHADC MDC Kurosh Marak who is pitted against sitting Congress MLA Kenethson Sangma and NPP’s Brening Sangma, besides four other contestants.
“The government under Prime Minister Narendra Modi has brought out several schemes to benefit the underprivileged but why has the Congress government in Meghalaya not allowed it to reach the people,” questioned Irani at the rally at Chaipani in Dalu.
Giving details, she said that the Prime Minister’s scheme to provide free gas connection to underprivileged women has helped over three crore women in the country and the daily wages for unskilled labour has been raised forty percent to Rs 350.
“But in Meghalaya women are not able to reap this benefit and wages have remained extremely low because the state government is not taking the initiative given by the central government,” said Irani.
She mentioned that the Centre had started a scheme to provide 200 types of medicines at subsidised rate to help the poor. “Why hasn’t the government in Meghalaya allowed the poor in the state to benefit from this scheme,” questioned Irani.
Reservation for women
The Union minister said only when women in sufficient numbers are able to don the uniform, crime against women can be tackled and assured reservation for women in recruitment to the police force if the BJP comes to power in Meghalaya.
Commenting on the poor road condition in the Garo Hills, Irani said without good roads, development cannot reach the people and charged the Congress of neglecting Dalu constituency by failing to attend to pressing issues of poor health facilities and drinking water problem.
Irani later held another election rally at Zikzak for Salmanpara party candidate and MDC Bhupendra Hajong.
Answers sought on devp
National spokesperson and Meghalaya in charge Nalin Kohli, who accompanied Irani to the Garo Hills, demanded an answer from the Congress over lack of development.
“Where are the roads, hospitals and jobs promised by the Congress. All these years the Mukul Sangma government has given nothing other than deceit. People will vote for a change on February 27,” a confident Kohli thundered to rapturous applause from the crowd who thronged the venue of the BJP rally.
The lone Garo MLA of the BJP in Assam, Numal G Momin, who is camping in Dalu, also addressed the crowd targeting both the Congress and the NPP.
“The Congress is a husband-wife party and NPP is a brother-sister party,” said Momin referring to Mukul Sangma and his wife Dikkanchi D Shira and James and Agatha.
The constituency of Dalu is a frontier town having its borders with Bangladesh. A once flourishing town, it was a major export hub through which coal and other minerals used to be transported before the NGT ban took place.
Dalu is of intense importance for the BJP as it gave the party its first MLA from Garo Hills in the 1990s. The BJP’s N N Simchang was elected from Dalu in the same year when two other party candidates, AL Hek and TH Rangad, won from Pynthorumkhrah and Laban, respectively, in 1998.
