Prime Minister Narendra Modi took a sharp dig at West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, calling her the "speed breaker" in the path of development. "There is a speed breaker in West Bengal, who you know by the name of 'Didi'. This 'Didi' is the speed breaker of your development," PM Modi told the crowd at a massive rally in north Bengal's Siliguri from where he launched the BJP's national election campaign in Bengal. "I am waiting for this speed breaker to go so development can gather speed," he said.
Earlier in the day, PM Modi, while addressing a rally in Arunachal Pradesh, targeted Congress for neglecting the northeast for the better part of the seven decades since Independence. "Now this is a stadium where you have come in thousands. We have brought you roads -- national highways, railways, connected you to the rest of India and it's all because you believed in me. The Congress just came to power to serve themselves that's why they never bothered, he told a rally in Arunachal Pradesh's Pasighat.
The prime minister is expected to address one more rally in the state - at the historic Brigade Parade Ground Kolkata. The BJP is expecting around eight lakh people at its rally at Kolkata's Brigade Parade ground, where the opposition's Mahagathbandhan was born with a rally organised by chief minister Mamata Banerjee in January.
While the prime minister will be drumming support for his party, Ms Banerjee will be addressing a gathering at Cooch Behar's Dinhata, 170 km from Siliguri. The chief minister has tweaked her campaign schedule -- earlier meant for April 4 -- so she could have the last word in today's verbal contest.
Meanwhile, BSP chief Mayawati will hold a joint rally with Jana Sena leader Pawan Kalyan in Andhra Pradesh. They would jointly address election meetings at Vijayawada, Tirupati and Hyderabad, the Jana Sena said.
