Narendra Modi reaches out to Mamata Banerjee, hits out at UPA II for inaction

NEW DELHI: Hitting out at UPA II, Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday said that the government at the centre discriminates between UPA and non-UPA states.

In an apparent move to reach out to West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, Modi expressed confidence that the state government will fulfil people's dreams. "Bengal will develop under Mamata Banerjee," Modi said. "During Vajpayee's tenure, Bengal never spoke of any kind of injustice against them. But now they are," he added.

According to Modi, he faces problems in governing Gujarat due to UPA's interference. "We have problems in Gujarat all day because of UPA's interference," he said. "The central government has been biased, its destroyed the federal structure of the country," he added.

Taking a dig at UPA II, Modi criticised the government for its policy inaction over the past two years. "We mustn't delay vital policy decisions. There is delay in policy, discrimination between states," he reiterated.

"It has taken me 10 years to fill the potholes left by the Congress. Bengal has had such potholes for 32 years," Modi said.

Applauding the state of Bengal for its intellectual prowess, Modi said he will learn a lot from the state and will implement those things in Gujarat. Addressing a gathering at a chamber of commerce, Modi said that if India has to touch eights of glory then Bengal has to play a major role. "Knowledge spread its wings in Bengal even during imperialism. Bengal has taught people to raise voice against social evils," Modi said.

Stating that the youth of Bengal has fought hard for India's freedom, Modi said, "Even the English knew that until they had Bengal under control they could not rule over India."

On Monday, Modi made a veiled attack at the UPA government contending that people had lost trust in governance which was a "serious threat" to the country as he pushed for decentralisation of power.

Modi, who is being projected by a section within the BJP as its Prime Ministerial candidate, drew a comparison with China in terms of development as he pitched for economic reforms, supported the policy of privatisation and backed FDI in various sectors except for retail.

While taking about his model of governance, he said India can match competition from China by exploiting the huge resources of young demography and democracy but it needs to think big which was not the case now.