Narendra Modi`s Lucknow rally: As it happened

Zee Media Bureau/Supriya Jha
3:29 pm: Like always, Modi concludes his speech with numerous chants of "Bharat Mata ki Jai" and "Vande mataram".
3:26 pm: Modi recites the lines of an optimist, patriotic poem, which he said someone had sent him.

3:26 pm: I will not let the country`s coffers get invaded by any claw (referring to Congress` party symbol). Neither would I allow any one riding on cycles, nor those seated on elephants to grab the country`s coffers, says Modi.

3:20 pm: The BJP is an optimist party. The coming decade belongs to the oppressed, the backward, the marginalised, the Dalits: Narendra Modi
3:20 pm: `Aandhiyo ki zid hai, jaha bijli girane ki, Mujhme bhi zid hai, wahi aashiyan banane ki` (If the storms are obstinate enough to wreck havoc at a place, even I am determined to make a shelter there itself), Modi recites a couplet, adding "I am not a pessimist. I am an optimist. The BJP has appointed me - a person hailing from a poor background - as the PM candidate".
3:17 pm: For them secularism is a slogan, for us its an article of faith. There secularism is about votebank politics. Ours is about India first. For them it`s power, for us it is Sarva Pantha Sambhav, says Modi.
3:14 pm: Under the guise of secularism, the leaders are misleading the nation. They are deviating from the main issues. They say forget jobs, forget water, forget price rise. Just talk of secularism, it is under threat: Modi.
3:14 pm: SP is "Samaj Virodhi Party".Vote bank politics have destroyed the country.
3:14 pm: If a minister`s buffalo goes missing, the police hunt it down in hours. But if a son goes missing, nothing happens - Modi.

3:13 pm: There is also a 3rd minister. He said our Central minister can`t commit corruption for so less amount.. there is a limit to shamelessness: Modi
3:12 pm: Take the example of your ministers in UP. One is tainted by coal scam. He has been accused of eating coal. And another one - he talks over the world but takes money from specially abled, Modi says.
3:11 pm: There have been more than 20,000 cases of atrocities against women in last one year in UP. There have been 150 riots in UP in last one year while Gujarat is in peace for last ten years. And Netaji is asking us to explain our actions? asks Modi.
3:10 pm: In UP, even 40 percent people have no access to electricity. In Gujarat, 99% people have electricity access, says Modi.
3:09 pm: Netaji, don`t take Ram Manohar Lohia`s name again and again. He would be pained by the spectacle of revelry in Saifai and simultaneous deaths of infants in Muzaffarnagar refugee camps - says Modi.
3:08 pm: There are two factions of the SP now – Samajwadi (Socialist) and Sukhwadi ( those who believe in their luxury): Modi
3:02 pm: Rather than picking holes in Gujarat, it would have been better had you talked about what you did for UP: Narendra Modi in Lucknow
3:01 pm:I have always believed in development over votebank politics. And now I am glad that even Netaji (Mulayam) had to leave votebank politics and talk about development. 3:00 pm: Mocking SP supremo Mulyam Singh Yadav, who in a rally at Allahabad today, told Modi not to compare the thickness of the crowds, Modi said that the SP leader has accepted defeat at that front.

2:57 pm: Atal ji said, the road to Delhi goes through Lucknow. India will be prosperous only if we sow seeds of a prosperous Uttar Pradesh: Narendra Modi

2:56 pm: Lucknow is known for its tehzeeb and adab (etiquettes and manners). No one can dent your image of tehzeeb. Don`t let the people in power destroy that culture: Narendra Modi
2:47 pm: The BJP chief concludes his address by sharing an interesting information about Kalyan Singh giving him Rs 5 as the membership fees.

2:55 pm:When I come to Lucknow, I remember Atal ji. How much have we learnt from him. You are lucky you embraced Atal ji - says Modi.
2:54 pm: This BJP wave will turn into a tsunami by the elections and then everyone`s destruction is guaranteed. SABKA vinash tay hai - S for SP, B for BSP and Ka for Congress. They will all be exterminated: Narendra Modi

2:52 pm: There have been 8 rallies in UP, with each one super than the other. There is a Kesariya Samandar (saffron ocean) in Lucknow today, There is a BJP storm here: Narendra Modi
2:51 pm: Tomorrow, the Class X and XII students will appear for exams. My best wishes to them. They are India`s future: Narendra Modi

2:50 pm: Yesterday, rain and hail lashed at several places in UP. Farmers have suffered losses. They are not alone - says Modi.
2:45 pm:Narendra Modi arrives at the dais to address the huge crowd.

2:44 pm: Rajnath appeals to the crowd to give all the 80 seats of the UP to the BJP.

2:40 pm: Rajnath also rakes up the issue of INS Sindhuratna mishap, saying how could such a grave mistake be committed when the country`s security is concerned.
2:35 pm: Rajnath Singh goes on to lambast the SP government in Uttar Pradesh, regretting the condition of sugarcane farmers.
2:33 pm: No law and order prevails in UP. Women are not safe here. But if a minister`s buffalo gets stolen, police are deputed to find the cattle. There is a phrase, "Akal badi ya bhains?" I would say - "bhains badi ya sarkar" - mocks Rajnath Singh.
2:31 pm: "No other political leader has been subjected to as much criticism as Narendra Modi. Since 2002, Modiji has been on the receiving end of endless verbal attacks. His poularity has soared to extreme heights... even a diamond has to go through so many processes before it gets its shine," says Rajnath Singh.
2:30 pm: Rajnath Singh starts by heaping praises on the state of Lucknow, calling it a city of Nawabs, a city of tehzeeb, (etiquette).
2:27 pm: BJP chief Rajnath Singh invited to the dias to address the crowd.
2:20 pm: Joshi lauds Modi for his firm stance on China.
2:10 pm: Senior BJP leader and former HRD Minister Dr Murli Manohar Joshi addresses the crowd.
2:09 pm: Modi arrives at the venue in Lucknow as BJP leader Uma Bharati is addressing the crowd.

1:23 pm: Kalyan Singh who returned to the BJP joining the party formally here at the rally said that this time the people have decided that Modi will be the PM. "It will be a visionary, the Loh Purush, the Vikas Purush, who will occupy the PM`s seat," he said.

1:20 pm: EX-UP CM Kalyan Singh starts his address with a chant of "Jai Shri Ram".
1:14 pm: Starting his speech with the chant of "Bharat Mata Ki Jai", Gen VK Singh urges the crowd to vote for the BJP. "Make sure you go home and get as many people as you can to promise to cast their vote," he says.
1:10 pm: Ex-Army chief General VK Singh, who joined the BJP only yesterday is addressing the rally after Dalit leader Udit Raj`s speech. In what will be his eighth rally in the politically strategic state of Uttar Preadesh, BJP`s prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi will shortly address the huge crowd at Lucknow`s Ramabai Ambedkar ground.

Uttar Pradesh that has a total of 80 Lok Sabha constituencies - making it the largest Indian state in terms of number of seats – is today witnessing three major rallies, the BJP`s Vijay Shankhnaad Rally here at Lucknow, AAP`s Arvind Kejriwal`s rally at Kanpur and Samajpwadi Party supremo Mulayam Singh`S rally at Allahabad.
The BJP is expecting a crowd of over 10 lakh at the `Vijay Shankhnaad` rally, which will be Modi`s eighth rally in the state since his anointment as the BJP PM candidate. As per BJP sources, he will pay reverence to former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee from the dais. 

Before Modi takes to stage, others addressing the crowd are newly appointed BJP leader VK Singh, Dalit leader Udit Raj, ex-BJP state chief Kalraj Mishra, former UP CM Kalyan Singh and BJP leader Uma Bharati.
BJP general secretary and Uttar Pradesh in-charge Amit Shah and other party leaders in the state have closely monitored the preparations for the rally. 

The backdrop of the rally displays a huge poster of Vajpayee. In order to ferry maximum BJP supporters to the venue the party has arranged 29 trains and several other transports. Besides this, several saffron flags and BJP posters have been put up all around the state. The party is expecting that over 10 lakh people may attend today`s rally. 

Uttar Pradesh has given eight out of 14 Prime Ministers to India.