Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday made a strong pitch to stem the demographic change in Jharkhand if the BJP is elected to power. Modi kick started his party’s campaign in the tribal state with two rallies where he accused the ruling alliance of allowing illegal migrants to settle in.
A day earlier, the BJP had released its manifesto where the party promised to bring uniform civil code in the state, but promised to keep the tribals who have their own customs out of its ambit. Home Minister Amit Shah who released the manifesto had made “Bangladeshi infiltrators” as centre of his attack.
Modi too kept up the attack on the riling alliance with reference to preserving the tribal identity which he said was under threat as Bangladeshi migrants were settling in the state.
“I promise you, after forming government in Jharkhand, we will make all efforts to stop the illegal migration. We will bring new law to return the illegally acquired land by the migrants in the name of tribal girls,“ Modi said during his rally in Chaibasa.
Modi even accused the Congress of trying to end reservation for the tribals.
Another highlight of his poll pitch was welfare of the tribal population particularly the women and youth. PM Modi hailed BJP's new manifesto, saying under new scheme, Gogo Didi scheme, women will be given Rs 2,100 per month, and the 'Yuva Sathi Bhatta' program offering unemployment allowances of Rs 2,000 for youth.
Voting will be done in two phases in the state. All the parties are vying for the tribal population, which constitutes over 26 percent. Getting tribal support is crucial to form government in the state.
Modi highlighted his government’s programmes for the tribals and the work done to highlight tribal icons. As tribal identity holds key to the polls in the state, the BJP’s continuous emphasis on invoking their identity is to wean them away from the ruling JMM-Congress-RJD alliance. Thus, the party has sharpened its attack on illegal migrants which is a potential emotive issue.