HT interview: Vajpayee knew how to take Opp along, says Kirti Azad
The people in Bengal saw the empty promises that Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP leaders made (earlier), Kirti Azad said.
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) does not have a vision and the Lok Sabha election results are only “the beginning of the end” of the party, cricketer-turned-politician Kirti Azad, who won the polls from Bardhaman-Durgapur seat in West Bengal on a Trinamool Congress (TMC) ticket, tells HT in an interview.
What helped the TMC do well in Bengal?
The people in Bengal saw the empty promises that Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP leaders made (earlier). The people in the state are bhadramanush (well-behaved). All the BJP’s lies and conniving methods have been exposed. PM Modi, in his speeches, did not make any mention of what he has done. He could not control rising prices or unemployment. Look at didi’s (chief minister Mamata Banerjee) work here. From the time a child is born to a person’s last journey, she does all the work…
What helped the INDIA bloc achieve so many seats? Exit polls had predicted something else…
The BJP today does not have a vision. They are traitors of the nation. They do not know how to rule. Their agenda has only been Hindu-Muslim and the people have not liked this. Had they (BJP) been exposed more by the media, it would have been different. This is why their numbers went down.
You were earlier with the BJP. What difference do you see in the current regime?
When I was with Atal Bihari Vajpayee, it was a different party altogether. He knew how to take the Opposition along. He would, of course, question them in Parliament but would never… talk about mangalsutra, jihadis, Muslims and non-vegetarian food. Everyone had an opportunity to voice their opinion. Now, you have instances of 150 parliamentarians being suspended because they are raising their voice. There is no room for criticism. It is like the days of Hitler.
What is the future of the INDIA bloc?
The INDIA grouping is going to do better (than the BJP). This is the beginning of the end of the BJP. It has already started.
What is the future of the BJP in Bengal?
The BJP has no chance in Bengal. The people were taken by the party’s false promises in the last elections. This time, the six to seven seats we lost were by only 5,000-6,000 votes. It was a neck-to-neck contest. I have heard that we will be meeting the chief minister on June 8. If we have to save the Constitution, we will have to build a stronger INDIA bloc.
