Khattar hails BJP-led NDA's performance in LS polls, gives credit to Modi and Shah

Chandigarh: Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar Thursday hailed the BJP-led NDA's performance in the Lok Sabha polls and gave credit to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, party chief Amit Shah and the state government's pro-people policies for the stupendous show.

He said nationalism has been a major issue in the polls and since early days, it has been a core principle of the BJP. Khattar said Congress leaders failed to understand the public sentiment on nationalism and targeted the BJP for raking up the issue. Countering opposition's attack on BJP leaders for seeking votes in Modi's name, he said there was nothing wrong in doing so. "I had been maintaining from the beginning that the NDA will win with a comfortable majority. I had also said that in Haryana we will sweep. It is a big victory for us. This shows that there is a strong pro-incumbency.

The credit for this victory goes to our Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP chief Amit Shah and pro-people policies of the government," Khattar said. He was talking to reporters here after the latest trends showed that the NDA appeared set to retain power at the Centre with a landslide margin.In Haryana too, the Bharatiya Janata Party was maintaining an unassailable lead on nine seats and was locked in a fight only in Rohtak constituency, where sitting MP Deepender Singh Hooda of the Congress is pitted against BJP's Arvind Sharma. "People saw through Congress' game plan.

What did Congress promise in their manifesto regarding the Armed Forces Special Powers Act and sedition law, everyone knows. What was their stand on the Article 370, which grants special status to Jammu and Kashmir. As far as our position is concerned, we remain committed to scrap the Article 370," Khattar said. "Privately, Congress leaders admitted that they did not have a tall, popular and a strong leader like Modi, which is why they used to object to BJP leaders seeking votes in Modi's name," he said.

When asked was it "Modi factor" alone which worked in Haryana or whether "Khattar factor" worked as well, the chief minister said, "Interpretations are for media to make." Khattar said people fully backed his government for giving a transparent and clean administration, for providing good governance, giving jobs on merit and showing zero tolerance towards corruption. "People also rejected dynastic and regional politics and defeated it. In Haryana, it used to be said this area is stronghold of a particular leader and that leader is strong from other area, but we rose above these factors and undertook all-round development with spirit of Haryana ek, Haryavanvi ek and Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas," he said.

Khattar said after exit polls showed the BJP-led NDA was headed to a landslide win, the opposition again started raising the EVM issue. "I often dub their EVM concerns as 'Ek Veham Mera'," he said. Asked about former chief minister and Congress leader Bhupinder Singh Hooda's performance in the polls, he said, "The Congress has paid for its policies, its culture of being self-centric and for its negative campaign." Meanwhile, the chief minister said the party was ready for the assembly polls now, which are due in October.