Assembly Elections 2022: Congress gt did not liberate Goa for 15 years, Nehru did not send armed forces, says PM Modi

Mapusa: Appealing to people to elect a BJP government in Goa, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday attacked the Congress and said it "did not liberate" the state for almost 15 years after Independence and the country's first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru did not send armed forces to the state which was under Portuguese rule at that time.

Addressing a rally here, the Prime Minister said people of Goa could not gain independence for almost 15 years after the country's Independence though the task could have been accomplished in a few hours due to the capability of India's armed forces.

"Congress government didn't liberate Goa for 15 years after Independence. People of Goa kept fighting but the Congress government didn't help. From the ramparts of Red Fort, India's first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru had said that he won't send forces for the liberation of Goa," the Prime Minister said.

He said Satyagraha was also carried out for the liberation of Goa but the then government did not help them.

Referring to the work of "double-engine" government in the state, the Prime Minister said Goa was the first state to inoculate 100 per cent of its population with COVID-19 vaccine.

"During the COVID-19 pandemic, if the work had been done in a way like the previous governments, would the country be able to create a record of inoculation of more than 150 crore vaccine doses to the people? If there were not the double-engine government in the state, could Goa be the first state in the country to have inoculated 100 per cent of its population?" PM Modi asked.

"Goa has completed 100 per cent coverage in vaccination, Swachh Bharat Mission, Jal Jeevan Mission, electricity supply. When the government moves forward with a 100 per cent coverage target then all possibilities of discrimination on the basis of caste, religion are eliminated," he added.

Goa will go to the Assembly polls on February 14. The counting of votes will take place on March 10.