Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday said that he believes that God has ordained that he works round the clock till 2047 to achieve the aim of ‘Viksit Bharat’.
During a show with India TV, the PM said that until that target is achieved, he won’t die.
“I believe God has ordained that I should work 24×7 till 2047 to achieve the aim of a Viksit Bharat (Developed India).”
“I feel, God Almighty has sent me for a special purpose. God has sent me to achieve the objective of a Viksit Bharat by 2047. God is showing me the path, God is giving me the energy. I am fully confident I will achieve that target by 2047 and until that target is achieved, God will not call me back,” the 74-year-old leader said.
Modi took a hit at the Opposition parties who have alleged that they have not been provided a level-playing field.
Speaking about former Chief Election Commissioner TN Seshan, PM Modi said that elections in the country in 1991 were postponed for 22 days after Congress leader Rajiv Gandhi was assassinated in Sriperumbudur on May 21, 1991, when only one round of polling was over. Elections were postponed till mid-June and voting finally took place on June 12 and 15.
“Was that a level-playing field?”, asked PM Modi. He said, “Normally, when a candidate dies, election in that constituency is countermanded, but in 1991, election across the country was postponed and polling resumed only after the funeral of the departed leader was widely publicized”.
Seshan, after retirement, fought against our party president (L K Advani) in Gandhinagar in 1999 on a Congress ticket, the PM said to journalist Rajat Sharma at the ‘Salaam India’ show.
Asked why two serving chief ministers (in Delhi and Jharkhand) were jailed during the ongoing Lok Sabha elections, PM Modi said, “We did not send them to jail. The courts sent the two chief ministers to jail. We do not have the power to send somebody to jail or keep anybody in jail. Courts have the powers.
“Look at what the Supreme Court said in the ex-Jharkhand CM (Hemant Soren)’s case. Look at what the Delhi High Court said about ex-minister (Manish Sisodia) in the money laundering case. People have seen huge loads of cash in crores seized by the Enforcement Directorate….All of us should honour ED for seizing Rs 2,200 crores in cash, which can be filled up in at least 70 tempos. Should anyone have a problem? One who has problem is crying outside. During the 10 years of UPA rule, ED had seized only Rs 34 lakh cash which can be stuffed in a school bag.”
He also said that the “400 paar” is not a slogan that has been coined by the saffron party, but by the people. “We were already 400 in strength in Parliament during the last five years, given the support that we got from other parties. Any child who gets 95 per cent marks will naturally strive for a higher target.”