GUWAHATI, May 1 - NEDA convenor and State Finance Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma today said that the results of the Lok Sabha elections will be �historic� and �spectacular� and added that people across the country have come out in large numbers to exercise their franchise to support the return of Narendra Modi as the Prime Minister for another term.
�There is not much use making conjectures. The results will be out on May 23. But one thing is sure enough that the results will be historic. The margins (of victory) will be huge. The BJP is waiting for a spectacular and historic result,� Sarma told the media on the sidelines of an event organised by the State BJP here.
He added, �Lots of �silent votes� have come to the BJP this time due to the popularity of Narendra Modi. There are people who have silently voted for the BJP.�
Sarma said that according to him, the quantum of such voters who have opted for the BJP �silently� is more than 25 per cent of the total voters.
�There are people who have no relation with the BJP or who generally stay away from politics but this time they have come to the polling stations in large numbers to cast their votes for Narendra Modi. We are waiting for a historic and spectacular result,� said the BJP strongman.
He said that the voters of India have come out in huge numbers to vote on the issue of nationalism.
�Even the voters in Assam have shown that we are very much part of the national mainstream. The ongoing elections have witnessed rejection of the idea of hard-line chauvinism. People believe in nation building,� said Sarma.
He claimed that minorities have been the biggest beneficiaries of the various social welfare schemes of the BJP regime but alleged that leaders belonging to the minority community try to ensure that common people do not become aware of this fact.
�So, in the next two years of our government (State government), we will have to bypass the leaders of the minority community and reach out to the common minority masses. Assamese Muslims have started voting for us. Now we must reach out to the other minorities also so that we can secure at least 25 per cent of the Muslims votes,� Sarma said.
Asked about yesterday�s incident of a wild elephant straying from its herd into the city and detouring through major roads of Guwahati, Sarma termed the incident as serious and said that ways will be devised, in consultation with the Forest Department, to ensure that such incidents do not recur.
Earlier, addressing the gathering during the party event, Sarma said that the BJP is heading for a clear victory in the ongoing Lok Sabha elections.
Sarma, who went to Varanasi to attend the filing of nomination papers by Modi, said that the euphoria he noticed there was unprecedented. He said that everybody in Varanasi, from the lawyers in the district court to waiters at hotels, greeted everybody with the slogan of �Har Har Modi�.
�When we hear some people criticising the BJP, we realise the contrast of how there are so few opponents as against crores of admirers of Modi. We are fortunate to work for the BJP under a leader like Modi. At least 25 per cent of the people are voting only for Modi. So we can add those 25 per cent votes in each constituency to what our candidates are securing on their own. Even in a State like Tamil Nadu, the leaders of our party are now saying that they are confident that the BJP will secure at least 50 per cent of the seats,� said Sarma.
He claimed that during the last two months all �anti-BJP elements� have vanished from the social media.
�In Assam, even those who had given slogans of Pakistan (sic) have now vanished because they have realised which way the wind is blowing,� said Sarma. He, however, cautioned the BJP cadres against complacency.
�The Modi factor will not be there during the elections to the Guwahati Municipal Corporation or during the polls to the Assam Legislative Assembly. Those additional 25 per cent of the votes will not be there then. So we have to work hard. We must keep our feet on the ground and serve the masses so that we can get similar support in 2021 (during Assembly elections),� said the NEDA convenor.
