Narendra Modi’s speech fails to satisfy many

Lucknow: For those who expected some major announcements for Uttar Pradesh on the eve of elections, Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s speech in Lucknow on Monday was a major disappointment.

The Prime Minister spent a good part of his speech talking about the huge turnout in the rally and chose to ignore the issues related to the impact of demonetisation on the common people though he did pledge to continue his war against corruption.

“Corruption and demonetisation are two different issues and I expected the Prime Minister to tell us how he plans to improve the situation in the coming days and also the next level of his war on corruption. I am surely disappointed with his speech”, said Vijay Srivastava, a teacher who had come from Sultanpur to attend the rally.

Rama Shankar Tiwari, a trader from Faizabad, said that the Prime Minister’s speech was “as good as all his speeches.”

“But I thought he would tell us what he would do for UP if the BJP came to power or, perhaps, make some new announcements and in that sense, I am disappointed,” he stated.

Bahujan Samaj Party president Mayawati termed the rally as a flop.

“The Prime Minister could not explain the reason and impact of demonetisation and neither could he justify the increase in prices of petroleum products. His speech shows that he has realised that Uttar Pradesh has understood his game plan and will not get fooled again,” she said.

Dujendra Tripathi, Congress spokesman, said that the Prime Minister’s speech indicated that he had realised that the demonetisation issue had gone completely awry and that explains why he avoided the issue this time.

“The BJP should also explain how it managed such massive crowds in a cashless way. Were the payments for buses and food packets made in the digital way?” he asked.

Samajwadi Party spokesman Mohammad Shahid said that the Prime Minister’s rally was held just before the model code of conduct comes into force and it appears that he has no road map for Uttar Pradesh.

“He continues to bash the opposition but refuses to address real issues that the common man is facing. The BJP should be more disappointed with its Prime Minister than the opposition”, he said.