Dibrugarh (Assam): BJP will win more than 300 Lok Sabha seats across the country in next year's general elections and return to power for the third consecutive term with Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the helm, Union Home Minister Amit Shah said on Tuesday. Addressing a rally in Dibrugarh, where he laid the foundation stone for a BJP office, Shah exuded confidence that the saffron party will win 12 out of the 14 Lok Sabha seats in the northeastern state.
"Narendra Modi will become the prime minister for the third consecutive term with the party winning over 300 seats in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections," he said. Launching a scathing attack on the Congress, the senior BJP leader said, "Northeast was once considered a fortress of the Congress but despite Rahul Gandhi's yatra (Bharat Jodo Yatra), the party failed to perform well in the recent assembly elections in three states in the region."
Assembly elections were recently held in Meghalaya, Tripura and Nagaland. The BJP formed the government in Tripura, and came in power as alliance partners in the other two states. Alluding to Rahul Gandhi's controversial remarks during his visit to United Kingdom, Shah, who arrived here from neighbouring Arunachal Pradesh, said, "He (Gandhi) insulted India from foreign soil. If he continues defaming the country and the government by peddling lies, Congress will be white-washed from the entire country after being shown the door in the Northeast."
"The more they badmouth Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the more BJP will grow," he said on '...kabr kudegi' remark. Shah said that the controversial Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act, 1958 or AFSPA has been removed from 70 per cent of the area of Assam, while Bodoland and Karbi Anglong areas are peaceful and the state's border disputes with its neighbouring provinces are being resolved.
"Earlier, Assam was known for 'andolan' (agitation) and 'aatankwad' (terrorism) but now there is peace and people are dancing to the beats of Bihu music," Shah said, while referring to a mega event which will be held in Guwahati on April 14 in which over 11,000 dancers will perform in the presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. (Agency inputs)