Amit Shah: “There Is No Conflict Between National Security And Development”

In the past four and a half months, BJP president Amit Shah has followed a punishing campaign schedule, addressing rallies in over 250 Lok Sabha constituencies. Constantly on the move by chopper or plane, while campaigning in Uttar Pradesh and Bihar last week, the Chanakya of Indian politics spoke to Deputy Editor Uday Mahurkar on his combative electioneering and the challenges and prospects of the BJP in the ongoing election. Excerpts:

- Uday Mahurkar

Q. It’s clear from the BJP’s election pitch that national security has taken precedence over development in the poll campaign. Does Balakot carry more weight than Ujjwala, Jan Dhan and Mudra now?

There is no contradiction between national security/ nationalism and development. The two are not opposed to each other. If we remain firm on national security and the defence of the nation and talk about it more, our pace in building toilets and homes for the poor does not go down. National security is, in fact, complementary to development. It’s the supporters of minority-based vote bank politics who are trying to build this false narrative.

Q. What’s different about the BJP poll strategy in 2019, compared to 2014?

Strategy-wise, the 2014 poll was to create hope among the people, bring them out of the atmosphere of despair created by UPA’s misgovernance and corruption. The question before the people was, who will bring this change. The answer was, Narendra Modi. Now, after five years, their hopes have been fulfilled by our work. So now we are talking about aspiration. It is this feeling of aspiration that our support base comes from now.

Q. What would a second term in power for the BJP mean for the country?