Modi to address 20 lakh "chowkidars" tomorrow

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will address "25 lakh" security guards tomorrow as part of the BJP's "chowkidar" movement through audio bridge, a party statement said.

On the 21st, he will address the people who have pledged support to the 'main bhi chowkidar' campaign as part of the 'Holi milan' programme through video conferencing at 500 locations.

As chowkidar politics hots up, the Congress launched a full-scale attack dismissing the campaign as a "sign of nervousness" of the BJP.

They trained guns on the prime minister with expressions such as 'Modi baba chaalis chor' (parodying the title of the story from One thousand and one nights) and 'chowkidar ki dadhi me tinka' (playing on a Hindi proverb and implying that a guilty mind is always suspicious).

Speaking in Arunachal Pradesh, Congress president Rahul Gandhi slammed Modi over the Chowkidar campaign saying Rafale deal has "exposed" the chowkidar himself.

"When you (Modi) are stealing everything, why have you made all your leaders chowkidar?" the Congress leader asked.

Unfazed, the BJP said the 'Holi milan' address with chowkidars on March 20 is a "significant step" towards meeting the objectives of "antyodaya" (the rise of the last man) and "sabka saath sabka vikas".

Hailing this event, BJP media department chief Anil Balooni said more than 20 lakh people have tweeted using the hashtag 'mainbhichowkidar', which topped the trend for two days with 1,680 crore impressions.

Besides, the BJP is also seeking to reach out to a large number of security guards deployed in cities and who have rural connect ahead of the Lok Sabha polls two months away.

"The outreach programme, which is already turning into a mass movement, is aimed at the common man of the country who silently work in the background and, as such, is one of the invisible pillars of the country," the BJP said in a statement.

Addressing the media at the BJP headquarters, Union minister Ravi Shankar Prasad slammed the Congress for attacking BJP's chowkidar campaign and said, "those who are on bail or have a lot to hide are opposing it".

Congress chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala ridiculed the BJP over the campaign accusing Modi of "trying to cheat people" with such campaigns.

“Hai, hai ri Modi sarkar, kabhi paan pakode kabhi chowkidar," he said.

He said that since the BJP has nothing to show the people, it is engaging in "branding and re-branding Modi".