New Delhi: Lauding the double engine government in Uttar Pradesh, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday said the support for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the first phase of the assembly elections has made the ‘parivarwadi’ depressed.


Prime Minister Modi said the BJP’s flag is flying high after the first phase of polling in Uttar Pradesh, adding this has made the rivals depressed.


“The faces of the opposition leaders looked disappointed in the interviews that appeared post afternoon yesterday. The ‘parivarwadi’ have realised that their boat has sunk and hence they have started blaming the EVM and the Election Commission,” Prime Minister Modi said addressing a rally in Uttar Pradesh's Kasganj.


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“The blessings and love you are giving to Modi and Yogi ji have made these family members restless. They tried to divide and separate you in the name of caste, but these people failed,” he added.


Prime Minister Modi said the truth is that people of Uttar Pradesh are not ready to accept them and their ‘gunda raj’.


He accused the Opposition parties of fielding criminals in the Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections.


“To defeat these criminals and goons, you have to vote unitedly for the BJP candidates. Never give the criminals a chance to take revenge on you,” he said.


Prime Minister Modi also lauded Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath for running a corrupt-free government and for scaling Uttar Pradesh to new heights.


“Today you have a chief minister whom even the opponents have never tried to accuse of corruption. The people of UP know very well the allegations against the chief ministers here before,” said Prime Minister Modi.


“The security environment that Yogi ji has given in UP has opened a new door of prosperity. Yogi ji has given that environment in which every section of the society should work hard and make progress,” he added.


Reaching out to the electorate, Prime Minister Modi said every vote cast in favour of the BJP will change the picture of Uttar Pradesh.


Prime Minister Modi claimed the parties, which earlier ruled Uttar Pradesh, never cared for the poor and downtrodden.


“These family members filled their houses and vault but never cared for the poor. These people neither wanted the lives of the poor to be made easy earlier nor do they want it now,” said Prime Minister Modi.


“These rumor-mongers were trying their best that free corona vaccines should not be given to the poor families, but the government of the poor did not allow them to succeed,” he added.


Accusing the Opposition parties of doing scams in the name of healthcare, Prime Minister Modi said: “Yogi ji's government has laid a web of hospitals and medical colleges. What is happening under Yogi ji's government has never happened in India.”


Stating agriculture and small industries are the biggest strength of self-reliant India, Prime Minister Modi said: “Even in the corona period, the double engine government has made sincere efforts for agriculture and small industries.”


Asserting there is no longer a “ration mafia” in Uttar Pradesh, Prime Minister Modi said: “Now every grain of ration taken out from Delhi for the poor, downtrodden and backward goes to them.”


“I also want to caution the people of UP. These family members are so angry at this time that they are determined to stop all the schemes for the poor first. So, never give chance to such people,” Prime Minister Modi said.


“The lesson you taught them in 2017 has made them realise now that there is no option without talking about development. That's why they have started remembering development too,” he added.


The Prime Minister extended his congratulations to the Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister over the decision to name a chowk in Ayodhya after late singing legend Lata Mangeshkar.


“The name of a chowk in Ayodhya will be named after Lata Mangeshkar ji whose ancestral residence is in Goa and who is a devotee of Shri Ram. This is the unity of India,” he said.


“I congratulate Chief Minister Yogi ji over the decision to set up Lata Mangeshkar Academy for music at film city,” he added.


Prior to his address, Prime Minister Modi paid floral tributes to former Bharatiya Jana Sangh leader Pandit Deendayal Upadhyaya on his death anniversary.


The Prime Minister’s remarks came a day after polling for the assembly elections in five states began with the first phase of voting in Uttar Pradesh.


Earlier on Thursday evening, electioneering ended for the first phase of assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh.


58 constituencies spread across 11 districts, including Shamli (Prabuddh Nagar), Meerut, Hapur (Panchsheel Nagar), Muzaffarnagar, Baghpat, Ghaziabad, Bulandshahar, Aligarh, Agra, Gautam Buddha Nagar and Mathura, voted in this phase.


Voting for the 403-member Uttar Pradesh Assembly is being held in seven phases.


Polling will be held on 55 assembly seats in the second phase on February 14.


59 assembly seats will go to the polls in the third phase on February 20, while 60 seats will go to polls in the fourth phase on February 23.


Polling will be held on 60 assembly seats in the fifth phase on February 27, 57 seats in the sixth phase on March 3 and 54 seats in the seventh phase on March 7.


The counting of votes will be held on March 10.