Narendra Modi Woos Telugus

Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi, on Sunday, addressed a massive gathering in Hyderabad, with a speech prepared to unabashedly woo Telugus, Hyderabadis, Telangana people, Seemandhra people, and anyone else in between. NTR was invoked, comparisons of Gujaratis and Telugus made, and an Obama-esque ending played out.

Almost 1.5 lakh people purchased entry tickets of Rs. 5 each to attend the Nava Bharata Yuva Bheri. These proceeds will go towards relief for Uttarakhand flood victims.

Since L B Stadium's gates were closed because of over-crowding, thousands of people listened to Modi's speech through the giant screens installed outside the stadium.

Modi began his address by reading out a Telugu script praying for the growth and development of Telugus all across the world. Stating that Gujarat and Telugus have relations dating way back, he said that there were even several Telugu medium schools in Gujarat.

He also tried to relate himself with Hyderabad by saying that he shares his birthday, 17th September, with Hyderabad Liberation Day.

Importantly, Modi tried to lure the Telugu Desam Party to join hands in forming a non-Congress government at the Centre after the next elections.

"NTR not only fought for Telugu pride, but also ensured the formation of a non-Congress government at the Centre. The biggest tribute to NTR would be a Congress-free government," Modi said, while addressing the rally.

Stating that the Telugu Desam Party enjoys NTR's legacy, he said that the party should take up the responsibility to achieve this goal. He called upon non-Congress groups to join hands to defeat the Congress in the state.

Speaking about Telangana, Modi accused the Congress-led UPA government of mishandling the issue. He said that the Congress has created difference between brothers.

"When the Vajpayee government formed Chattisgarh, there were celebrations in Madhya Pradesh. Similarly, people in Uttar Pradesh celebrated the formation of Uttarakhand, and sweets were distributed in Bihar when Jharkhand was formed. However, the Congress has mishandled the issue to promote enmity between the people of two regions," he said.

With regard to the proposal of making Hyderabad the joint capital of Telangana and Andhra Pradesh, Modi said that the Centre should have started this process in 2004 instead of now asking Seemandhra people to wait for their capital city.

Clarifying that the BJP is in favour of Telangana, he said that the party is equally concerned about the welfare of Seemandhra people.

Modi appealed to the people of both the regions to maintain peace and harmony. "When lakhs of Telugus can live peacefully in Gujarat, then why can't Seemandhra people live in Telangana?" he asked.

He said there should be no hatred among brothers, and added that development is the only solution for both the regions.

The BJP's probable prime ministerial candidate slammed the Centre on several counts, including Chinese intrusion, attacks on Indian soldiers by Pakistan, suicides in Maharashtra and Andhra Pradesh, the Food Security Bill and corruption.

In a bid to copy US President Barack Obama's election campaign, Modi ended his speech by asking people to repeat the slogans "Yes We Can" and "Yes We Will Do." Of course, he signed off by saying Jai Telangana and Jai Seemandhra.

Senior leaders including M Venkaiah Naidu, Bandaru Dattatreyya, state BJP president G Kishan Reddy and others also addressed the meeting. (INN)