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Lashing out at the Opposition INDIA bloc, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday said the attacks on him will not stop the fight against corruption and action will be taken against those involved in graft irrespective of their status.
"When Modi is fighting the battle against corruption with full strength, these people have formed the INDI alliance. They think they will intimidate Modi, but for me, my Bharat is my family and I am taking steps to protect it from the corrupt," the prime minister said addressing his first rally in Uttar Pradesh after the announcement of the Lok Sabha election schedule.
Modi's counter-offensive came as the stalwarts of the INDIA bloc held a rally at the Ramlila Maidan in New Delhi in support of Aam Aadmi Party chief Arvind Kejriwal and Jharkhand Mukti Morcha leader Hemant Soren, arrested on graft charges, and accused the prime minister of adopting dictatorial policies.
The prime minister said some people are rattled because he is taking action against corruption.
"I am fighting a big battle to save my country from the corrupt. That is why they are behind bars today and not getting bail even from the Supreme Court," Modi said.
"The election is a fight between two camps. On one side you have the NDA committed to eradicating corruption, on the other side is the INDI Alliance focused on protecting corrupt leaders. You have to decide whether corruption should be removed or not," he said at the rally in Meerut.
"Corrupt people should listen... no matter how many attacks you make on Modi, this is Modi, he is not going to stop. No matter how big the corrupt person is, action will definitely be taken. The one who has looted the country will have to give it back. This is Modi's guarantee," he said.
Raising the Katchatheevu island issue, Modi accused the Congress and the opposition alliance of trying to harm the country's unity and sovereignty.
"Today, yet another anti-India conduct of Congress has been exposed. The island of Katchatheevu, which lies between India and Sri Lanka and is extremely important from the perspective of national security, was given away by Congress after Independence.
"India is still paying for the misdoings of the Congress government," he said.
The 2024 Lok Sabha election is not just for making a government but to make a 'Viksit Bharat', Modi said, adding his government was preparing the roadmap for the next five years.
Modi lauded Meerut as the land of "revolution and revolutionaries" that gave leaders like Chaudhary Charan Singh to the nation.
"Our government has already started preparations for the third term. We are making a roadmap for the coming five years. Work is going on rapidly on what major decisions we have to take in the first 100 days.
"In the last 10 years, you have seen only a trailer of development, now we have to take the country much further," he said.
The prime minister said he has lived in poverty and "that is why Modi understands very well the sorrow of every poor, the pain of every poor, the suffering of every poor".
"So I made schemes to address every concern of the poor. We have not only empowered the poor, but we have also given them back their self-respect," Modi said.
Rashtriya Lok Dal president Jayant Chaudhary, who recently joined the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance, shared the dais with the prime minister at the rally.
Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh Yogi Adityanath, Haryana CM Naib Singh Saini along with veteran actor Arun Govil of TV serial 'Ramayan' fame, who is the BJP candidate in the Meerut Lok Sabha seat, were present at the rally.