New Delhi: Urging voters to bid “permanent farewell” to Congress leader Digvijaya Singh from politics, Union Home Minister Amit Shah invoked a famous Urdu couplet by Fidvi Lahori during a rally in Madhya Pradesh's Rajgarh as he appealed to the people to defeat Singh by a record margin and ensure victory for BJP candidate Rodmal Nagar.
"Now, it is time to bid farewell to him (Digvijaya Singh) from politics, but I have a request to you all to bid him farewell permanently, but - 'Aashiq Ka Janaza Hai Zara Jhoom Ke Nikle...' and for this, you have to ensure his defeat with a huge margin of votes. People of Rajgarh should make him sit at home," Shah said while addressing an election rally.
Veteran Congress leader Digvijaya Singh is contesting from Rajgarh Lok Sabha constituency, considered his pocket borough, after a gap of 33 years. He previously represented Rajgarh in Parliament during the 1980s and early 90s and currently serves as a Member of Parliament in the Rajya Sabha.
In the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, Singh contested from Bhopal but lost to BJP candidate Sadhvi Pragya Singh Thakur by a significant margin. This time, the BJP has nominated Rodmal Nagar, who has previously won two parliamentary elections from the constituency in 2014 and 2019.
Rajgarh is scheduled to go to polls on May 7 in phase three of the seven-phased general elections.
Slamming the Congress, particularly regarding their handling of the Kashmir issue, Amit Shah accused the party of “cradling” Article 370 like an "illegitimate child for 70 years”, contributing to the rise of terrorism.
He praised Prime Minister Narendra Modi for abrogating Article 370 in Kashmir, asserting that under BJP rule, terrorism and Naxalism have been effectively dealt with.
"During the previous Congress rule, terrorists from Pakistan used to carry out bomb blasts in India every day, and the Congress government used to sit silently. During the BJP government, when the terrorists from Pakistan made the mistake of creating havoc in Pulwama and Uri, within 10 days, the Indian Army entered Pakistan's territory and eliminated the terrorists by carrying out surgical strikes and air strikes. PM Narendra Modi has eliminated terrorism and Naxalism from this country," he said.