Bengaluru, Jun 22 (IANS): Union Minister of State for Labour and Employment, Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises, Shobha Karandlaje, on Saturday said that not only internal forces but "invisible foreign forces" had conspired to ensure that Prime Minister Narendra Modi does not a third term in office.
Addressing a gathering at the felicitation programme of Central ministers and MPs here, the Union Minister, who hails from Karnataka, said: "The foreign forces stood against the BJP during the election. Social media were against us. It was funded by foreign countries. Many countries did not want to see Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the helm as the country is set to become one of the powerful countries in the world. The conspiracy was hatched at the international level."
However, Prime Minister Narendra Modi went on to assume the PM's office for the third term, defeating the conspiracies, despite the roadblocks and facing all charges against him, she said.
"This is our strength. This was the conviction of the people of Bharat," Shobha Karandlaje said.
"The win in the Lok Sabha election is a testimony that the people of the country will win over any war waged against them. The way was clear for us, and the government was formed. Prime Minister Modi's conviction is to take NDA allies along with the BJP," she added.
The Union Minister said that in Karnataka, the BJP and JD-S contested polls together and worked jointly.
"There was no difference of opinion in any constituency, and we got good results. We lost a few seats by low margins. In the Kalaburagi seat, the margin was just 25,000. The coming days belong to us," she said.
"In Karnataka, there is an anti-people, anti-Hindu, and anti-poor government in place. We are constantly targeted here. Immediately after the Congress government came to power, electricity bills shot up, the registration fee was hiked, and there was inflation. The middle and lower-middle class who are paying power bills are made to pay double the amount," the Union Minister said, criticising the Siddaramaiah-led Karnataka government.
"The government will not be able to pay the salaries of its employees in another two months," she said.
Saying that the Congress government has already suffered a blow, referring to the tribal welfare board scandal, the Union Minister said: "We need to continue the agitation till we get the resignations of Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and his deputy, D.K. Shivakumar."
Talking on the performance of the BJD-JD(S) combine in the Lok Sabha polls in Karnataka, the Union Minister said: "Winning 19 seats in Lok Sabha election was not an easy job as the Congress is in power in the state. It had claimed that the BJP wouldn't cross the single digit mark. But the people of the state have ensured our victory."