Melamara (Assam): Giving a call for a
"jihad" against corruption, senior BJP leader L K Advani on Friday
said the menace has engulfed the UPA at the Centre and the
Congress-ruled Assam.
"Corruption has become a deep-rooted problem which has
engulfed the UPA-led government at the Centre. People should
be ready for a 'jihad' (war) to root out corruption from all
levels of the government," he said.
He was addressing an election rally in the tea-tribe
dominated Melamara in the Golaghat Assembly constituency.
Jihad, he said, was required to remove three
afflictions -- black money in foreign banks, unprecedented
price rise and corruption in the country.
At another rally at Balipara in the Rangapara seat in
Sonitpur district, Advani said, "The price rise in the country
is not due to economic mismanagement, but due to corruption
and dishonesty of the Congress at the Centre and Assam.
"Our NDA is not in power at the Centre now. I can say
with pride that the situation is much better in all states
where we are in power," Advani claimed.
At the state level, sectors like health, education and
employment were facing various problems, he said. "These three
sectors have been neglected particularly in remote areas,"
Advani said.
In a jibe at 74-year-old Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi,
he asked the people to tell him "to take rest after ruling the
state for ten years ... no work has been done because those in
power for long have become arrogant and insensitive."
Accusing the state government of being responsible for
lack of development, he said the plight of rural youth has
been neglected over the years.
Referring to the jubilation over India's victory
against Pakistan in the cricket World Cup semi-final, he said,
"The same kind of celebration should be repeated if a
corruption-free government with promise of good governance,
comes to power in the state.
"Your vote is very valuable as you get the opportunity
to exercise your franchise only once in every five years. I,
therefore, urge you to cast your ballot cautiously to ensure
that BJP comes to power," the veteran BJP leader said.
JD-U convenor Sharad Yadav, who also addressed the
rallies, criticised the UPA government at the Centre for
corruption and price-rise.
PTI
First Published: Friday, April 01, 2011, 17:53