BJP sweeps North-East polls

Photo: Indiatoday

Modi stops victory speech midway for ‘Azaan’

• Victory after victory is a positive sign. This has boosted our confidence even more for 2019: Amit Shah
• We will win Karnataka, Kerala and Odisha too: Amit Shah

NEWDELHI: After sweeping the North East elections, Indian Prime Minister Modi, addressing a jubilant crowd at the party headquarters in New Delhi, saying the North East had “voted for development.” However the Prime Minister surprised all by halting his victory speech for two minutes on hearing the azaan (evening call for prayer).

Restarting the speech with chants of “Bharat Mata ki jai” (Hail Mother India) Modi said the public had repaid the pain and sacrifice of BJP workers’ lives with their votes.”

“The Left has always used the weapons on fear and confusion,” said the Indian Premier while asking for a two minutes silence to be observed in memory of those who died with a two-minute silence. “In a democracy victory and defeat were two sides of a coin and the beauty of a vibrant democracy. Political parties should work for victory but be prepared to face defeat with sportsman spirit,” he said.  “Those who have extolled the virtues of democratic rights,” he stated, hinting at the Left, “have lost the mettle to accept defeat with dignity.”

“While Holi had witnessed an amalgam of many hues and colors, today the saffron color, (the dominant color of the BJP party flag) has swept the polls. Citing Vastu Shastra experts, he said, they regard the north-east corner of a building as the most important. “So I am glad that once the North East is taken care of, once it is on the path of development and one with the mainstream, the rest of the nation will be fine too. This is but a step towards complete victory in 2019,” Mr. Modi said.

In a huge setback for the CPM, the Manik Sarkar government has been ousted by the BJP which may pick Biplab Deb to head its government. In Meghalaya, the Congress has emerged as the single-largest party, but the BJP is confident of forming the government along with UDP and NPP. Congress has already rushed senior leaders Kamal Nath and Ahmed Patel to Shillong to check horse-trading and hold alliance talks, while the BJP has dispatched Himanta Biswa Sarma to cobble together an alliance. In Nagaland, to, the saffron party has consolidated its position with the BJP-NDPP alliance set to wrest power from the NPF+. The BJP-NDPP’s CM face Neiphiu Rio has already won unopposed from Northern Angami-II.