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Gadkari says in poll season – People beat up leaders who show dreams but don’t fulfil them

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8 years ago

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Modi and Gadkari

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Senior BJP leader and union minister Nitin Gadkari once again made a statement that has provided fodder to the opposition and forced the BJP and Narendra Modi government into an embarrassed silence.

While Modi government’s term is drawing to a close and there’s talk of its failure to deliver on nearly every poll promise – be it jobs, farmers’ plight, manufacturing, value of rupee, etc – Gadkari on Sunday said that people like leaders who show them dreams, but when those dreams aren’t fulfilled, people also beat up the leaders.

“Sapne dikhane waale neta logon ko acche lagte hain, par dikhaye hue sapne agar pure nahi kiye to janta unki pitayi bhi karti hai (People like political leaders who show them dreams. But if those dreams are not fulfilled, the people thrash these leaders),” said Gadkari.

“Isliye sapne wahi dikhao jo pure ho sakein. Main sapne dikhane waale mein se nahi hu. Main jo bolta hu, woh 100 per cent danke ki chot par pura hota hai (Hence you must only show dreams that can be fulfilled. I am not among those who show dreams. Whatever I say, I fulfill it 100 per cent),” he said.

Gadkari was speaking at an event in Mumbai to launch a new BJP-affiliated transport outfit — the Navbhartiya Shiv Vahatuk Sanghathana (NSVS).

Gadkari, who is the Minister of Road Transport & Highways, Shipping and Water Resources, River Development & Ganga Rejuvenation, highlighted his ministry’s ambitious project to turn rivers into waterways and plans for making road transport safer and more reliable. He said road projects worth Rs 5 lakh crore had been sanctioned in the state.

Many in the Opposition and some political commentators interpreted his comments as an indirect message to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP President Amit Shah, given the accusations levelled at the BJP about failing fulfil the promises it made in 2014.

The remark provoked some in the Opposition to ask for whom was the warning meant for. Taking a jibe at Gadkari over his statement, AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi said that the minister was showing his party “a mirror in a subtle way.”

RJD leader Manoj K Jha also expressed shock at the comment and wrote, “OMG!! Something is brewing!!!”

Gadkari, a former BJP president, also spoke about his stint as Maharashtra’s PWD minister when the Shiv Sena-BJP government was in power (1995-99) in the state. “The mediapersons in Mumbai know what kind of a person I am as they have seen how I complete projects. They do trust me,” said the 61-year-old politician from Nagpur.

“People used to laugh at me when I, as PWD minister, used to claim that I was going to build over 50 flyovers in Mumbai, and bring down the travel time between Mumbai and Pune to merely two hours (via 91-km expressway). I was ridiculed but I proved them wrong and completed every project I had promised,” Gadkari said.

At the function, Bollywood actor Isha Koppikar joined the BJP and was made working president of the party’s women transport wing.

Last year, the Union minister had made comments that were said to have caused the ruling party much embarrassment. At an event he had said that some people in the BJP need to speak less. Politicians in general need to be more economical while speaking to media, he added.

In October 2018, the Union minister created a storm when he hinted that the BJP deliberately made “tall promises” to come to power. He said, “We were very confident that we would never come to power, so we were advised to make tall promises. Now that we are in power, the public reminds us of those promises made by us. However, these days, we just laugh and move on.”

In December, at the annual Intelligence Bureau (IB) Endowment Lecture, Gadkari had said: “If I am the party president and my MPs and MLAs are not doing well, then who is responsible? I am.”

This remark came just days after his comment that “the leadership should own up to defeat and failures”, in an apparent reference to the BJP’s defeat in the assembly elections in Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh. Gadkari later said that his statements had been “twisted”.

“Success has many fathers but failure is an orphan, as when there is success, there will be a race to take credit but in case of failure, everybody will start pointing fingers at each other,” he had said. “Leadership should have the ‘vrutti’ (tendency) to own up the defeat and failures,” he had said.

At the IB function, Gadkari had also said that he liked the speeches of India’s first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru. “Tolerance is the biggest asset of the Indian system,” he had said. “You can’t win elections only because you speak well… you might be a vidwan (learned) but people may not vote for you. One who thinks he knows everything is mistaken — people should refrain from artificial marketing,” he had said.

Earlier, he had said that “some people in the BJP need to speak less. Politicians, in general, must be more economical while interacting with the media”.

At the valedictory function of the annual Marathi literary meet at Yavatmal on January 13, Gadkari said politicians should not interfere in other fields.

The meet was embroiled in a controversy after an invitation to writer Nayantara Sahgal was withdrawn apparently under pressure from a political party.

Without making a direct reference to the row, Gadkari had said, “Politicians should learn not to interfere in other fields. The people who are in universities, educational institutions, literature and poetry, they should be dealing with their (respective) areas.”[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]

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Nandigram bypoll on October 6 after Suvendu Adhikari vacates seat

The Election Commission has announced October 6 as the polling date for the Nandigram bypoll, with votes to be counted on October 9.

Published

17 hours ago

on

September 7, 2026

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Suvendu-Adhikari

The Election Commission has announced the schedule for the Nandigram bypoll in West Bengal, with voting set to take place on October 6. The counting of votes will be held on October 9.

The by-election has been necessitated by Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari vacating the Nandigram Assembly seat after winning the constituency as well as Bhabanipur in the 2026 West Bengal Assembly elections. Adhikari decided to retain Bhabanipur and give up his Nandigram seat.

The Election Commission said the poll process will formally begin with the issue of the gazette notification on September 9.

Nandigram bypoll schedule

According to the election schedule, candidates can file their nominations until September 16. The nomination papers will be scrutinised on September 17, while September 19 will be the last date for withdrawal of candidature.

Polling in Nandigram will be conducted on October 6 and votes will be counted on October 9. The Election Commission has said the entire election process will be completed by October 11.

Why is a Nandigram bypoll being held?

The Nandigram Assembly seat fell vacant after Suvendu Adhikari resigned from the constituency.

Adhikari had contested the 2026 West Bengal Assembly elections from both Nandigram and Bhabanipur and won both seats. He subsequently chose to retain Bhabanipur and vacate Nandigram, making a by-election necessary for the constituency.

The Nandigram contest is also significant because Adhikari had defeated Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee from the constituency in the 2021 West Bengal Assembly election.

Rejinagar bypoll also scheduled

The Election Commission has also announced a by-election for the Rejinagar Assembly constituency in West Bengal. The Rejinagar seat became vacant after Aam Janata Unnayan Party founder Humayun Kabir gave it up.

Polling for Rejinagar will also be held on October 6, with counting scheduled for October 9.

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Telangana Assembly clash: Congress targets BRS over remarks against Speaker

Telangana Assembly witnessed a political clash between Congress and BRS over alleged remarks against Speaker Gaddam Prasad Kumar. Revanth Reddy demanded action against BRS MLC Tata Madhu.

Published

18 hours ago

on

September 7, 2026

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A political confrontation erupted in the Telangana Assembly on Monday as the ruling Congress and Opposition Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) clashed over alleged objectionable remarks against Assembly Speaker Gaddam Prasad Kumar.

Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy condemned the remarks allegedly made by BRS MLC Tata Madhu and demanded an apology from BRS president K Chandrashekar Rao. Tata Madhu, however, denied making any statement targeting the Speaker.

The controversy unfolded on the opening day of the Telangana Assembly session, which also witnessed a separate confrontation between BRS leaders and police outside the Assembly premises.

Revanth Reddy demands action against BRS MLC

Raising the issue in the House, Revanth Reddy said the remarks against the presiding officer could not be tolerated. He demanded that K Chandrashekar Rao apologise and sought the resignation of the BRS leader accused of making the remarks.

The Chief Minister also called for the membership of the legislator responsible for the alleged remarks to be revoked.

Congress leaders said the matter was particularly serious as Gaddam Prasad Kumar is a Dalit leader holding the constitutional post of Speaker.

SC legislators from the Congress also met Revanth Reddy and urged strict action against Tata Madhu.

Congress seeks suspension of Tata Madhu

The Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee demanded the immediate suspension of Tata Madhu from the Legislative Council over the alleged remarks against the Speaker.

Congress workers also protested against the BRS MLC by burning his effigy.

The BRS legislator, however, denied making objectionable remarks against the Speaker. He maintained that the comments attributed to him were not directed at Gaddam Prasad Kumar.

BRS leaders detained outside Assembly

The controversy inside the House came amid another confrontation outside the Telangana Assembly.

BRS working president K T Rama Rao, former minister T Harish Rao and other party leaders were detained by police after they attempted to enter the Assembly premises wearing black T-shirts.

The BRS leaders were protesting against what they described as the Congress government’s performance during its 1,000 days in office.

The confrontation between BRS leaders and police added to the tension surrounding the opening day of the Assembly session.

Telangana High Court intervenes

The political dispute also took another turn after the Telangana High Court directed the Director General of Police not to prevent BRS MLAs from entering the Assembly.

The court’s intervention came amid the Opposition’s allegations concerning the treatment of its legislators outside the Assembly.

With Congress demanding disciplinary action over the alleged remarks and the BRS accusing the government of suppressing the Opposition, the first day of the Assembly session ended amid a sharp political confrontation.

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PM Modi takes aim at critics with Dimagi Naxal remark at SRCC centenary address

PM Modi revived his dimagi Naxal remark at SRCC’s centenary celebrations and spoke about India’s development journey.

Published

2 days ago

on

September 6, 2026

By

PM Modi

Prime Minister Narendra Modi revived his ‘dimagi Naxal’ remark while addressing the centenary celebrations of Shri Ram College of Commerce (SRCC) in Delhi on Saturday, using the term to criticise his opponents.

Speaking to students at the Delhi college, PM Modi described the phrase as a “homeopathic pill” and said it had prompted those he described as “dimagi Naxals” to come forward and reveal their views.

The prime minister also used his address to speak to Gen-Z about India’s development journey and asked students to consider the challenges the country had faced in the past.

PM Modi recalls past crises

During his speech, PM Modi referred to the 2013 Kedarnath disaster and the 2008 global financial crisis while criticising the handling of national emergencies by previous governments.

He said the government at the time of the Kedarnath disaster was shaken and questioned its ability to respond to the crisis.

Referring to the 2008 banking crisis, PM Modi alleged that the government of the time failed to effectively deal with the situation and claimed that India’s banking system was pushed close to collapse.

Prime minister lists challenges faced by his government

PM Modi also highlighted several major global crises that occurred during his government’s tenure.

He mentioned the COVID-19 pandemic, the Russia-Ukraine war, disruptions to global trade and supply chains, and the crisis in West Asia.

The prime minister said there had been concerns that India would struggle during these crises but argued that the country had continued to move forward.

PM Modi’s earlier SRCC visit

PM Modi had earlier visited SRCC in 2013, when he was the chief minister of Gujarat. His speech at the college received significant attention, particularly on social media, ahead of the 2014 Lok Sabha election.

His latest visit came during the college’s centenary celebrations, where his address focused on young people, India’s development ambitions and the challenges faced by the country.

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