Prime Minister Narendra Modi said that there is evidence of ‘terrorism groups’ that are creating lack of trust in the minds of gullible people, thus endorsing the view of Union Minister Pon Radhakrishnan.
In an e-mail interview given to the Tamil newspaper Dina Thanthi, Narendra Modi spoke about various issues ranging from BJP’s scope in Tamil Nadu to Rajinikanth to corruption. He also maintained that the BJP had chances of winning Tamil Nadu if the party worked well in the state.
Chances of BJP in Tamil Nadu
“In the previous Lok Sabha polls, BJP won one parliamentary seat in Tamil Nadu without teaming up with DMK or AIADMK. This is not an ordinary victory. There are areas which have supported the BJP for generations,” he said.
He also said that the people in Tamil Nadu had very less choices during elections and that the youth in the state are looking for alternatives. He also expressed his confidence of securing a good victory if the party works hard in the state.
On Rajinikanth and his politics
Rumours have been rife in the media about Rajinikanth mulling the option of joining the BJP. Narendra Modi said that he respects Rajinikanth for his achievements and that he cannot comment on hypothetical situations.
On Pon Radhakrishnan’s comment about terrorist activities in TN
Recently the Union Minister of State for Shipping Pon Radhakrishnan said that there is terrorist influence in Tamil Nadu and had added that the central government would help the state government to act against such elements. Narendra Modi in his interview said that terrorism is hampering the development and welfare of people around the world and that even in our country there are people causing problems with the schemes introduced for the welfare and progress of the states.
“There is evidence that there is involvement of terrorist groups in these actions. Former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said this in relation to protests against the Kudankulam Nuclear Power Plant. People associated with these terrorist groups are sowing seeds of distrust in the minds of gullible people. We have evidence for that.
Hence we should together strive to prevent such wrong information from spreading,” he said.
Corruption
Amit Shah, in his recent visit to Chennai, had spoken in a public meeting that the corruption levels in Tamil Nadu is very high and that BJP, if elected to power would eradicate it.
Validating Amit Shah’s views on state-level corruption, Narendra Modi said that evaluating the state government’s performance was the right of the people living in those states.
Emphasising that the BJP government is strong on fighting corruption, he said that the Benami Transactions (Prohibition) Act was passed by the BJP government despite being introduced in 1988.
“Demonetisation has hit the big fishes of corruption badly. People who had exchanged money after demonetisation are now paying higher taxes. Our direct tax collections have increased since then,” he said.
He also stated that BJP’s war against corruption for the welfare of the people of India will continue.