BJP failed to encash success of note scrap : Venkaiah

Union Minister M Venkaiah Naidu says the BJP workers could not transmit the positives of demonetisation to the masses

​Hyderabad: Union Minister M Venkaiah Naidu on Saturday admitted that ruling BJP failed to take the positives of demonetisation to the masses fully.

“We should note one thing. Our party workers' weakness is that on note ban or demonetisation, we (BJP workers) could not transmit it (the idea to masses) to the required levels. We should agree that but we got support from unexpected quarters.

Congress and Communists started opposing the government’s move. Then people started realising that there must be something good in the whole exercise as they believed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi will always do the needful," Naidu said at a party workers’ meeting here.

The Telangana unit of BJP celebrated the party's win in the recently concluded Maharashtra Municipal elections. He said Chief Ministers of Telangana State, Andhra Pradesh and Bihar supported the government’s move to demonetise the high- value currency notes.

“You (opposition parties) opposed it. You do not know what you talk,” he alleged.He further said BJP is emerging as a pan-Indian party and has about 11 crore members and on the other hand Congress with its dwindling strength is becoming a "notional party".

Citing the success in Maharashtra civic polls, he urged the party cadre to work hard towards similar results in Telangana State.“We have more number of party workers than any other party in the world. We are number one in this country also. Still are many places and districts where the party has to spread its wings," he said.
Reading out statistics, he said BJP will emerge as main opponent to ruling parties in Odisha and Telangana and may even come to power.

“Odisha where the BJP has contested without any alliance with Biju Janata Dal won nine Zilla Parishad seats. BJP is expected to give a tough competition to the ruling party in Odisha and come to power. We are also working towards making BJP a strong force in both Telangana and Andhra Pradesh,” he said

He criticised former Home Minister P Chidambaram over his comments on Kashmir and sought to know the Congress' stand on the issue. "He knows about the fragile situation in Kashmir as he has also served as the Home Minister of the country. It is wrong to make such statements and is not in the best interest of the country. We condemn this statement," Naidu said.

"We want to ask Congress Party what is their stand on Kashmir?" he asked. At an event in Hyderabad yesterday, Chidambaram had reportedly answered a question about Jammu and Kashmir, saying he felt the situation there was grim, and that a series of mistakes were made which were "almost too late" to correct now.

He had also criticised recent controversial comments of Army Chief General Bipin Rawat that anyone interfering with security operations will be treated as anti-national. "That's, I think, thoughtless, intemperate words," the former Union Home Minister said, remarks which did not go down well with Naidu.

"I mean, is it wrong what he (Rawat) said against the terrorists? And are the terrorists right?" Naidu asked. Union Labour Minister Bandaru Dattatreya, Telangana BJP President K Laxman, party floor leader in Assembly G Kishan Reddy and other senior leaders also participated in the celebrations.