Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Thursday that political parties which nurture corruption and nepotism had looted the resources of the tribal society but the situation was being reversed by his government. He was speaking at a public meeting in Jabalpur, Madhya Pradesh.
Earlier Mr. Modi laid the foundation stone of Veerangana Rani Durgavati Memorial and Garden. The project is dedicated to the 16th century Gondwana kingdom queen who is revered across the tribal-dominated Mahakoshal region and other parts of election-bound Madhya Pradesh.
“Those who nurture corruption and nepotism have looted the resources of the tribal society. Before 2014, minimum support price was given only on eight or ten minor forest produce items, other forest produce were bought by some people for throwaway prices and tribals did not get anything. We changed this and today, around 90 minor forest produce articles have been brought under the MSP,” said Mr. Modi.
Without naming the Congress, the Prime Minister, who also inaugurated a slew of development projects accused the party of eulogising “only one family”.
Making a pitch for the support of tribals and the socially disadvantaged in the Mahaskoshal region that accounts for 38 seats, Mr. Modi said his government honoured icons like B.R. Ambedkar, Sant Ravidas and Rani Kamlapati by constructing memorials to them.
Targetting past governments over corruption, Mr. Modi said the names of some 11 crore non-existing persons were removed from government records as benefits were being availed in their names. This figure of 11 crore was more than the combined population of Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh, he added.
He further said that through the trishakti (triumvirate) of Jan Dhan bank accounts, Aadhaar and mobile phone connections, the “corrupt network of Congress” could be decimated. This, he said, had prevented pilferage of over ₹2.5 lakh crore.
Asserting that pre-2014, major scams used to make headlines, Mr. Modi coined a new slogan on the lines of his almost decade-old “Na khaunga na khane dunga [I will neither pocket bribe, nor let anyone else do it]”, He said, “Na desh ka khazana lutne dunga, Congress netaon ki tijori bharne dunga [Neither will I allow the country’s treasury to be looted, nor will I allow the coffers of Congress leaders to be filled].
