Rajasthan Assembly Elections 2018: BJP flags off poll campaign from Charbhuja Nath Temple run by Gujjar priests

National BJP president Amit Shah on Saturday flagged off the BJP Rath and along with it the party’s 40-day poll campaign from the Charbhuja Nath Temple on Saturday.

Shah flagged off the yatra by waving the BJP flag at the revered temple in Rajsamand. Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje took the centre stage on the rath which shall be her home for the next 40 days.

Earlier, dressed in red, chief minister Raje entered the Charbhuja Temple with her son and Member of Parliament Dushyant Singh in tow. She was accompanied by priest Umesh Dwivedi who had famously predicted she would get past the 150 mark in 200-seat assembly in 2013.

The chief minister was ushered in the sanctum sanctorum of the temple which was washed clean and decked up before her visit. The temple has been managed by a close-knit family of 500 priests. “We get to do the prayers on behalf of the devotees on the basis of a roster,” one of the priests told DNA.

Every time she has visited the temple for a special prayer, Raje has taken a pledge that she vows to fulfill. Dwivedi said that the chief minister Raje is committed to the people of Rajasthan and in the presence of the almighty she has committed herself to the state’s welfare.

This is the third time in a row that Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje has kick-started her poll campaign from Charbhuja Nath Temple. Her two previous campaigns were launched from this temple when she was in the Opposition. In both the cases, 2003 and 2013, she ended up successful forming the government by dislodging the Congress chief ministers.

‘Congress is a case of sour grapes’

BJP state president Madan Lal Saini said that the Congress can allege whatever it wants but the fact remains that they didn’t do anything for bringing the people out of their misery when they had the chance to make a difference.

“Lakhs of mothers would risk their health to prepare and serve food everyday in the villages and towns. The Congress never thought of offering them a solution and bring them out of their daily misery,” Saini said, adding, “The BJP government introduced the LPG cooking gas scheme for them under the Ujjwala programme. This is the difference between us and them. We walk the talk,” Saini told reporters.

To the Congress charge that the party’s Gaurav Yatra would be the BJP government’s final Yatra (last journey), Saini quoted the schemes that have resulted in a beneficiary pool of over 4 crore in Rajasthan. “If you look at the Annapurna Scheme, people who come with the ailing family members can afford to have a good breakfast and piping hot meal for just Rs 5 and Rs 8” he said.

Girls were not encouraged to study, he said. “Vasundhara Raje government motivated them to step out by offering cycles, two-wheelers, and laptops to the deserving and the meritorious kids,” Saini said.

Parliamentary affairs minister Rajendra Rathore went one step further. He said that the Congress has no moral grounds to attack the Vasundhara Raje government when their previous governments have failed to address the people’s issues. “The last time they were reduced to a number that would have fit in a bus. This time the public would reject them again and I fear a three-wheeler would be enough to ferry their representatives to the Vidhan Sabha,” Rathore said.

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Rajasthan assembly elections 2018