Modi’s Ad Campaign Shows ‘Dictatorial Mentality’: NCP

MUMBAI: The Sharad Pawar-led NCP today objected to the ad blitzkrieg of BJP’s prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi, saying it depicted “dictatorial mentality”. “The ad talks not of a BJP government, but of a Modi government. BJP should realise that the days of rajas (kings) where the regime were named (after the emperor ) are long gone,” party spokesperson Nawab Malik said.

“In the old days, there used to be Shinde Sarkar , Gaekwad Sarkar , Khilji Sarkar , Mohgul Sarkar .... After Independence, it was Sardar Patel who abolished the princely states. Indira Gandhi later ended their privy purses,” the NCP leader said. To a query on Modi meeting farmers and widows of far mers who committed suicide , in Vidarbha today, Malik said, “a leader of traders wants to reap political benefit of the plight of farmers” .

By fielding Modi from Varanasi, the RSS wants to bring in the Ram temple agenda to forefront afresh, he said. Modi’s contesting from two seats shows he lacks confidence, he added. Malik claimed that farmers in hailstorm-affected areas of Maharashtra were committing suicides due to the politics played by the opposition BJP.

BJP is aware that there are certain restrictions (on rendering relief) due to the model poll code in place. Despite this they are creating a certain atmosphere,” he said. Malik indicated NCP would expel Vijaykumar Gavit, who was sacked as medical education minister yesterday after his daughter joined BJP, from the party too. The Congress-NCP combine would win 38 of the 48 seats in the state in the Lok Sabha polls, he said.