Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and Deputy Chief Minister Samrat Choudhary.
Credit: PTI Photo
Patna: “We are fighting a war against terror. And this war is not over. Nor has it been halted. If the terrorists raise their ugly face again, they will be destroyed and decimated like we did earlier this month,’ said Prime Minister Narendra Modi here in Bihar while addressing a BJP rally at Bikramganj in Rohtas district on Friday.
“I came to Bihar barely two days after the heinous Pahalgam terror attack in April. From the land of Bihar, I had promised to the world that those responsible for the killing of the innocent will be identified, traced and punished in such a way that it will be beyond their imagination. Today I can boast that I have fulfilled my promise. If the terrorists raise their ugly head again, they will be reduced to rubble,” roared Modi as the large crowd, braving scorching Sun, cheered in unison.
Modi, who reached Patna on Thursday, was addressing a party rally in Bikramganj in West-Central Bihar, so as to boost the morale of his partymen who felt terrible after the BJP lost all the four Lok Sabha seats in this Shahabad region: Buxar, Sasaram, Ara and Aurangabad – that too in the Modi-wave during the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.
“We are fighting terrorists from across the border. At the same time, we are fighting Maoists within the border. Before I took over as the PM in 2014, there were 125 naxal-affected districts in India. Today, only 18 such districts are left and I am sure Maoist violence too will end soon and those involved in the acts will join the mainstream of our society,” said Modi.
The Prime Minister dwelt at length how development work could not take place in areas of Sasaram and Aurangabad due to Maoists’ threat. “It was Nitish ji, who ensured development should take place in naxal-affected areas and end Maoist violence,” said the PM.
Modi also took a dig at Nitish’s predecessor Lalu Prasad. “Those who earlier ruled Bihar took the land of those who got jobs in the railways and today give slogans like social justice,” said Modi adding that “such people are ‘lootera’ (robbers) who have robbed you all these years and you need not fall into their trap again.”
During his third visit to Bihar this year, the PM on Friday also inaugurated and laid the foundation stone of several road, railway and power sector projects worth Rs 50,000 crore.