PM Modi takes digs at Pakistan, says 'aatank' exporter is fighting for 'aata'

Taking a dig at Pakistan without naming it, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday said a country which was a supplier of 'aatank' (terrorism) was in trouble for 'aata' (flour) these days.

Addressing an election rally in Madhya Pradesh's Damoh, PM Modi said India, which once purchased most of its weapons from abroad, was now exporting high-tech weapons to others country, and discussed the supply of BrahMos supersonic cruise missiles to the Philippines.

Citing the current situation in the world, he pleaded for a strong and stable government at the Center on the day the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, which will be held in seven phases, began with the voting of over 100 seats.

“There are many countries in the world whose situation has worsened. Many are going bankrupt. Even one of our neighbors, which was a supplier of “aatank” (terrorism), is now struggling to obtain supplies of “aata” (flour)”. » Modi said, targeting Pakistan.

The Prime Minister asserted that his government works on the principle of 'Rashtra Pratham' (nation first) and never succumbs to pressure from anywhere or bows down to anyone.

Defending India's decision to buy oil from Russia in the face of international pressure after its invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, he said: “To ensure that the people of the country get cheap oil and that farmers are getting adequate fertilizers, we have taken this decision in national interest.”

“We have seen in the last 10 years how a stable government works in the interest of the people. During the COVID-19 crisis, chaos reigned across the world, but a strong BJP government brought back its citizens from the world whole,” he said.

The star BJP campaigner stressed that the next five years would be crucial in making the country a major global power.

PM Modi said when war clouds are hovering in different parts of the world, there is a need to have a government that can meet all the demands, comments coming in the backdrop of the war between Russia and Ukraine, the conflict in West Asia and the rise of Iran. Israeli tensions.

He said India has become self-reliant in the defense sector and is in the process of exporting arms worth Rs 21,000 crore to other countries this year.

Modi pointed out that while he was delivering a speech here (in Damoh), India was exporting the BrahMos supersonic cruise missile system to the Philippines.

The prime minister accused the opposition of weakening the country's defense sector and said it was guided by its own interests, even when it came to purchasing weapons for the defense forces.

He criticized the Congress for creating hurdles in the procurement of French-made Rafale fighter jets for the Indian Air Force, and said that if the opposition party had been in power, the planes Tejas could not have taken flight.

The BJP, in its manifesto, promised that everyone above the age of 70 would be brought under the Centre's Ayushman Bharat Yojana health insurance scheme, guaranteeing them free treatment up to Rs 5 lakh, Modi pointed out.

The Prime Minister asserted that his government was committed to the welfare of the poor and highlighted that the Center had extended the free ration scheme for nearly 80 crore beneficiaries by five years.

Modi praised Iqbal Ansari, a former litigant in the Ramjanmabhoomi-Babri Masjid case, for accepting the invitation to attend the January 22 consecration ceremony at the Ram temple in Ayodhya, and criticized the opposition for boycotting the 'event.

The BJP has fielded Rahul Lodhi from Damoh Lok Sabha seat and state party president Vishnu Dutt Sharma from Khajuraho constituency. These two seats will be voted on in the second phase of elections on April 26.