Ahmedabad:
Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi addressed supporters in Ahmedabad on Thursday evening and thanked the people of Gujarat for his thumping election victory.
Highlights from his speech:
- I thank my Gujarati brethren.
- These results prove that the people of this country can differentiate between good and bad.
- And when they get an opportunity to decide, they rise to the occasion with an eye to the future.
- BJP had a simple slogan - ek mat Gujarat. Political pundits could not understand what it meant, it wasn't spicy.
- But people understood what we meant and they carried the 'lotus' and the slogan home.
- Voters in Gujarat have risen above communal and caste considerations.
- They make governments accountable by re-electing political parties. This futuristic thought can come only from a mature electorate - I congratulate the voters of Gujarat.
- Political pundits can discuss Modi all they want, but today's hero is the six-crore strong electorate of Gujarat.
- They used to say good economics doesn't make good politics - in Gujarat, people have shown that good economics and good governance can be shown; they support it.
- People will forget about what happened, they will rise from everything if they see development.
- It is the support of people which take me down the right path, make right decisions.
- I have just one dream - My Gujarat!
- They said govt employees are upset, but when postal ballots were counted, the numbers were astounding.
- Main khel Dilli se jeetna chata tha, aaj who khel janata ne mujhe jita diya.
- If I have faltered anywhere in all these years, I apologise.
- For me the people are a form of god, and today I want something from you. You have given me power, now I seek your blessings.
- This is not Narendra Modi's victory, this is the victory of six crore people of Gujarat.
- This is a win for all those people across the country who want India to prosper.
- Is chunaav mein ek taraf lakhon logon ka paseena hain aur doosri taraf paisa hain. Maine kaha tha paseena jeet jayega aur paise harega.
- The party is like our mother, without the party we are nothing.
- I do not want to criticise anyone, but I heard what pundits across India had to say on TV.
They have not been able to digest this victory. I don't know what will happen to them tonight. - I ask you to pray for them so that they get a good night's sleep.
- If you add up Congress's seats in Gujarat and Himachal, and it's still less than BJP's.
- Even if we had 93 seats, a BJP government would have been formed. But political pundits wanted today to forget this simple arithmetic.
- The people have given me their mandate. I need no certificate from anyone else.
- With your permission, I will visit Delhi for a day on the December 27. (People chant PM, PM...) By serving Gujarat, I serve India.
- Na mujhe rukna hai, na thakna hai, sirf aapke sapnon ko poora karna hain.
- Aaj aapne mujhe jeet liya hain, aane waale paanch saal mujhe aapko jeetna hai.