The Bharatiya Janata Party will alone get 370 seats in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on February 5, adding that the Opposition has "failed as an Opposition" has decided to remain in the same position for a long period to come.
He was replying to the Motion of Thanks on Presidential address delivered on January 31, 2024, in the Parliament.
“I appreciate the Opposition's resolve to remain in the opposition for a long time...The way you sat here (in government) for many decades, the same way you resolve to sit there (in Opposition). The public will certainly give you its blessings," he said.
According to him, the Opposition failed to fulfill its responsibility. "I have always said that the country needs a good Opposition," the PM said.
While Modi is confident of BJP winning 370 parliamentary seats alone, he sees the cumulative tally of National Democratic Alliance (NDA) crossing the 400-mark.
In a direct jab at the Congress and Rahul Gandhi, the PM said,"Ek hi product baar-baar launch karne ke chakkar mein, Congress ki dukaan tala lagne ki naubat aa gayi hai (In a bid to re-launch the same product, the shop of Congress is on the verge of being locked)," he said.
'World hailing Indian economy'
Modi said the world is hailing India's economy. "On the basis of 10 years of experience, I can say that in our third term India will become the third largest economy of the world. This is Modi's guarantee. I now wish to look forward and outline a vision for future," he said.
Modi recalled that the Indian economy, based on its size, stood at the 11th spot before he took over at the government's helm. In the past 10 years, the economy has jumped to the 5th spot, he said, adding that it will be the "third largest in my third term".
The prime minister added that the Centre has built four crore houses for the poor. "For the urban poor, we built 80 lakh pucca houses. Had these been built at the speed of Congress, it would have taken 100 years to do this work. Five generations would have passed by then," he said.
The PM said he speaks about millet promotion because he is concerned for three crore farmers.
He also remembered how the Sengol was installed at the new Parliament building. "When the President came to this new Parliament building to address all of us and the pride and honour with which Sengol led the entire procession - we were walking behind it. When we become a witness to the reflection of that holy moment of India's independence in this new tradition in the new Parliament building, the honour of democracy rises," he said.
Modi, during his address, also took a stinging jibe at Congress icon and late former prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru, saying that he thought Indians are "lazy" and they're not that smart. "Indira Gandhi's thought process was not very different from Nehru," he added.
The prime minister's blistering address in the Parliament, in which he teared into the Opposition ranks, comes ahead of the high-stake general elections in which he is seeking a third consecutive term in power.
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