Uttar Pradesh polls 2017: PM Narendra Modi rakes up surgical strikes to woo voters in Western UP

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday addressed an election rally in Meerut ahead of assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh. He said that if BJP forms a government in Uttar Pradesh, it will put an end to gundaraj in the state. He also attacked the Congress, saying the party entered into alliance with the Samajwadi Party even after demeaning them in the past.

Here are the live updates:

#BJP will clear all dues of sugarcane farmers within 14 days, if voted to power

#What is the reason that he has not been removed?

#Notebandi ka virodh karne waali Cong se poochna chahta hoon ki kya kaaran hai Karnataka mein unke ek mantri ke ghar se 150 crore mila?

#I knew on 8th November that people who looted will not like the decision that was taken and they'll join hands against me

#We gave a befitting reply to Pakistan, PM Modi on surgical strikes

#Central Government is one that will do everything for our forces. After forty years OROP became a reality

#UP Government should state their relation with sugar mills. Why are the farmers not being given their dues

Uttar Pradesh polls 2017: 'We will put an end to gundaraj in UP' | 10 sweeping statements of PM Modi

#40 saal tak faujiyon ki aakhnon mein dhool jhonki gayi. Desh ke liye jaan ki baazi lagane walon ke liye OROP humne laagu kiya

#Every family needs to have their own house and so we've started working towards fulfilling this vision by 2022

#We are willing to do everything for the growth of UP. To change the fortunes of UP change the government in the state

#Later, we increased the amount to Rs 7,000 cr and from there they couldn’t even spend Rs 280 cr for the poor

#Rs 4,000 cr was allocated to UP Govt so that they can give health-related aid to you people, but they couldn't even spend Rs 250 cr

#UP govt plays vote bank politics

#Even if I try and help UP from Delhi, if the state Govt has no intention, the money will go somewhere else

#They are shouting 'bachao bachao' after alliance. Those who can't save themselves, talk about saving Uttar Pradesh

#What made you hug them: PM Modi on SP-Congress alliance

Read full coverage of UP assembly elections 2017

#If we've a state government that creates obstacles, then the development work will get stalled in Lucknow

#What politics guided you when you prevented development works and healthcare to reach people

#Those who have been rejected by the people, how can they talk about saving the state

#Congress was going to every village saying how UP has been looted. They were demeaning the SP and the state government

#Why are innocent citizens being killed? Why are innocent traders being killed? There is no fear of the law among the killers

#If we have a state government that creates obstacles then the development works will get stalled in Lucknow. Nothing will reach people

#Uttar Pradesh gave me affection & I am trying everything possible for progress of UP. Lots has been done but I want to work more

#Uttar Pradesh has so much potential but why do youth of UP not have employment opportunities

#First War of Independence began here in Meerut in 1857; Then the fight was against British, now it's against poverty

#We will put an end to gundaraj in UP

As Punjab and Goa go to polls, the focus of political stalwarts has shifted to western UP. BJP chief Amit Shah, Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav and Bahujan Samaj Party supremo Mayawati are all in western UP, campaigning heavily for upcoming assembly elections. 

Leading the charge, however, is Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who addressed an election rally in Uttar Pradesh's Meerut on Saturday. With sizeable Muslim voters, western UP will vote in the first phase of UP elections 2017 on February 11. 

In the upcoming polls, the competition is set between SP-Congress alliance, BJP and BSP. Western UP, rocked by Muzaffarnagar riots in 2013, may set the tone for the other rounds of voting. The region has 73 constituencies in all. 

While SP, Congress and BSP share influence over minority vote banks in the region, BJP has not given even a single ticket to Muslim candidates for the assembly elections. Muzaffarnagar riots, Kairana migrations and the Jat anger may further polarise the vote bank politics.

ALSO READ | UP elections 2017: Will PM Narendra Modi be able to set the tone for BJP's victory in western UP?

This may act as the double-edged sword for the BJP, which is banking heavily on its traditional Hindu voters to claw back to power after more than a decade and a half.

In a highly controversial statement, BJP MP Parvesh Sahib Singh Verma in December claimed that Muslims do not vote for BJP because it is a patriotic party. "We don’t care about any votebank. Muslims have never voted for us and they never will. It is a very simple matter.. why is every terrorist in the country a Muslim and why do Muslims not vote for BJP… Because the BJP is a patriotic party, that’s why Muslims don’t vote for us. We don’t care about any particular community. We will build the Ram Mandir."

Western UP will be a cakewalk for the BJP, Keshav Prasad Maurya told a newspaper recently, "Migration of Hindus out of fear and the protection given to Muslim goondas has made people lose faith in SP. We will find out how many more Kairanas are there in UP. Every Hindu family that had to flee will be brought back and every person who was party to this crime will be behind bars." 

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On the Jaat anger against the BJP, he added. “We don't do caste politics. It will be a one side win for the BJP in western UP. Deoband, Chandausi, Gautam Budh Nagar..We will win with huge margins here. We will get over 300 seats overall."

Despite the claims, PM Modi is likely to face an uphill task ahead of him on Saturday as he attempts to woo the voters who are traditionally not in BJP camp. But if he manages to tilt the balance in BJP's favour in western UP, the party may just make a comeback in the political arena of Uttar Pradesh.