BJP Vice President and Rajya Sabha MP Smt. Smriti Irani interacted with Mission272+ Volunteers as part of the ongoing series of India272+ Dialogues events. During the interaction she spelled out the BJP’s priorities , commitments while encouraging our Volunteers to never lose sight of the ultimate goal – Mission272+

Narendra Modi has done a lot of good projects in Gujarat. What are his plans vis a vis every state in India?

We are a nation of possibilities, we are a nation of young aspirants and Narendra Modi is a catalyst who can help the youth of this country recognize and realise their dreams. Mr. Modi in the national Council Meet has put forth in a very unique fashion his idea of India and what he seeks to do as the PM of the country. On the top of his agenda is the youth of the country. He recognizes that we have a lot of youngsters who need enhancement of their skill, who are capable of starting their own businesses , who are capable of strengthening the service sector in our country. We are largely an agrarian society and there is a need to ensure that the youth takes as much interest in the sector of agriculture. Narendra bhai has always pointed out the need to build infrastructure and strengthen the infrastructure in our country. All growth sectors in india have come to a standstill. It was frightening to read that non-performing loans will rise up to Rs 3 lakh crore in the month of March. There is a need to jumpstart the economy.

How are we looking at the interlinking of rivers, a dream of Atal ji’s dream and how does the BJP manifesto talk about it?

We in the BJP have always hjad a desire to fulfill Atal ji’s desire of interlinking of the rivers. Narendra bhai has also highlighted the subject in his speech at the National Council Meeting recently held. My request is that one visit the BJP website which has the excerpts of the speech and you will be gladdened to know that Narendra bhai has answered this very question himself. Interlinking of rivers will be one of the top priorities when he becomes PM of the country.

Lakhs of Indians travel via railways. How are we thinking of opening of the railway system, bullet trains and safety?

Narendra bhai has always been a propagator of the use of technology for good governance to ensure that people’s needs are fulfilled. It saddens me to see that a report on bullet train from Mumbai to Ahmedabad has been in the cold storage of the Government from the last two and a half to three years. The GoI does not seek to implement a report that is ready so I feel that the first challenge that the nation faces today which is of policy paralysis whither away under Narendra bhai’s leadership. We are technically sound to ensure that the idea of bullet trains is implemented in India. All we lack is leadership.

Job opportunities are a matter of concern. How are you going to solve this problem if BJP comes to power?

Jobs are created when there is over all emphasis on jump starting the economy across various segments so that the economy is not held hostage by one particular sector. I speak about agriculture, if you look at Narendra bhai’s speech at the National Council he was very articulate in saying that there is a need to attract the youth towards agriculture. I had the privilege of working under Dr. Swaminathan who said that in India we have the capacity of having a 125 agricultural zones given the diversity of crops, given the opportunity we have in the field of research and technology. We can and have agricultural labs in every district of our country and given the youth’s inclination towards technology it is one field where we can inspire young leaders. Similarly we have and industry that goes along well with agriculture which is storage and transportation.

We need a government in place that looks at the economy in a very comprehensive fashion. Narendra bhai has a proven track record in ensuring industrial progress as well. Gujarat summit with over a 100 billion dollars in investments and MoUs is a very very big example of that. In terms of industry which is facing a policy paralysis we will ensure that there is no red tape or red carpet which is rolled out. We not only look at industrial growth vis vis growth of so called manufacturing units but also through my Gujarat experience I have seen how industry can become a part of social reform. Mistan Mangalam is a project where the corporate structure along with the Govt of Guijarat engages with women self helkp groups and over 30 lakh women have done business worth 1700 crores. Narendra bhai has always been very explicit in saying that we are looking at growth opportunities in the agricultural sector, in the industrial sector and at the same time given our demographic divident the service industry is also something we can look forward to strengthening.

What will BJP do differently now on the issue of black money, its previous stand on the issue being known?

We are the only political organisation which has had all its MPs publicly declare including given it in writing to the Speaker of the Lok Sabha and Chairman of the Rajya Sabha that none of the MPs or public representatives of the BJP have any black money accounts overseas. It is interesting that none of the Congressmen stepped up and gave a similar declaration. Narendra bhai has spoken in his vision that not only are we committed in getting the black money back but we are also looking at legislation at how to distribute that black money into initiatives and programs which will help us bring about more social equality.

How do we plan to utilize our power of women for the Mission272+?

My own experience as President of the Women’s wing of the BJP was extremely enriching for me because I was presented with the opportunity of working with women in urban and rural sectors. I also saw the political potential of the women particularly across the villages in our country. I was quite blessed to see that the BJP gave an organisational platform for women’s active participation in politics. As a woman karyakarta of the BJP I am extremely proud to say that mine is the only political organisation in the country which amended its own party constitution to give women 33% reservation within the organisation. Congress party though led by a lady has had no such amendment. I am equally pleased to say that as a MP of Rajya Sabha I am quite blessed to be led by a leadership though in the Opposition, Shri Arun Jaitley led decisively the mandate of women in the country who wanted reservation.

The fact that the Congress was deserted by its own allies when the 33 per cent reservation bill was introduced in the Rajya Sabha, the fact that Shri Arun Jaitley ensured that the Bill was passed in the RS gladdens my heart. Our leadership has declared publicly that when this Bill is introduced in the Lok Sabha BJP will ensure that we support the passage of this Bill. Why I speak about this Bill is because I see a trickle down effect specifically among women in villages who say that this is one of the reasons why they feel BJP is a political organisation that empowers them and I had the unique opportunity of utilising my Mp landfund in Gujarat and there is a village called Sisua where everyone was aware of the programs and policies of Samras Gram Panchayat where the village unanimously elects a panchayat and sisua is a unique example where educated young girls were elected by the village to be the panchas and the sarpanch is a young lady there . We have over 200 such Mahila Gram Panchayats and I am looking forward to Narendra bhai’s leadership to see that this policy is also implemented to empower women politically

What will BJP do specifically on women’s safety and education?

As a political activist I am extremely reassured when I see my party leadership engage with women vs a vi problem of women’s security and ensure that the law is implemented in the strictest fashion possible. Today when I see Gujarat I see a state where women even at 11 in the night can roam around freely because they have an assurance that the law will be implemented, they have an assurance that a guilty person will be punished in a timely fashion and when you have that assurance that the rule of law exists that’s when you see crime come down. It is ironic that I know many women parliamentarians who are uncomfortable stepping out after 7 in the evening. I am of the opinion that when you look forth at an assurance of security you need a decisive leadership that has a proven track record even on issue s of women’s security.

Whats your first reaction when you hear of the recent incident involving the Delhi law Minister and Ugandan women who were ill treated?

Our ethos has always been ‘Vasudev Kutumbakam’ and for me the issue of safety even for women who do not originate from my own land and who seeks shelter, we have always had the culture of Atithi Devo Bhava and we have never chased away an atithi by racially profiling them. As a citizen it is extremely concerning for me when I see a person in power would seek to break the law in guise of protecting certain interests. I feel that especially when you’re in a responsible position it is extremely disheartening to see one break that law. It is disheartening to see that people who claim to be the bew breath of fresh air in Indian politics reek of racial profiling.

How does BJP assess AAP? What is likely to be AAP’s impact in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections?

As a political activist one should not ever dismiss or get overtly enamoured by one political segment or organisation. It will be extremely beneficial for the organisation if all the volunteers completely focus on how we through our efforts build our organisation, increase our voter base and ensure that every person we are in touch with finds their name in the voter list, registers as voters and on the day of voting how we take out each and every voter and request them to vote. In the past two weeks survey after survey shows a decimated Congress led UPA and a decisive victory for the BJP led NDA. Why I particularly pointed out the Congress and UPA is because after alligning with Congress to form Government in Delhi AAP is now officially a part of the corrupt UPA and given that the nation today is not supporting the corrupt Congress I do not see a very favourable result for any UPA delegate which includes the AAP . Another incident which should be kept in mind is the way the nation’s capital was held hostage for close to 48 hours by those who took a lot of pride in calling themselves anarchists. I feel that that has left a bitter taste in the mouths of many especially by those who felt that they were being promised a Camelot. What these voters saw is that the AAP is not giving them Camelot, is actually dishing out a disaster which is what happened. I would rather hope that the BJP voters and karyakartas completely ensure that our voter base increases and concentrate on our own goal.

How does the BJP plan to sway the new crop voters whose numbers are huge?

Our efforts are also displayed very well on www.india272.com. I would urge everybody who is participating in this dialogue today to register themselves as volunteers and encourage young people to register as voters and check whether their names appear. Every volunteers needs to check to ensure that the names appear on the list and to equally ensure that while we look forward to the big projects that come our way in terms of volunteers the first place to begin is your own gali, mohallah. Check with your friends, families, relatives, neighbours to see if their names appear on the voters list. BJP is also engaging with youngsters through the Youth Wing, our efforts through our mobile apps and I hope this comprehensive effort bears fruit.

When do we start seeing BJP leaders campaigning door to door?

I am in charge of the state of Goa. We had Narendra bhai’s rally on the 12th of January which was historic because Goa has never seen such a large crowd participate in a political rally. We have around 10, 41000 voters and 2 lakh turned up which is 20 per cent of your voting population which has never happened anywhere. In mandals we went to each booth , around 1600 of them, and when I say we went I mean not just our karyakartas and me i also mean Mr. Manohar Parikar so I feel that there is a mis communication that we are not doing on ground activities. We do events organizationally and because they are not publicly declared events maybe the information about it is less available in the public sphere.

How are we thinking of reaching the rural population where digital penetration is less?

There is a misconception that we are not a gaon ki party but a urban party. We need to reflect on the recent events that have stemmed out of Madhya Pradesh, Chattisgarh and Rajasthan. We have had stupendous victories in these states which are having a huge rural voter base. The reason is because my leadership in Chhattisgarh and MP has done spectacular work through various policy initiatives. Through all these policies and initiatives we have reaped the benefit in the last Assembly Elections. In Gujarat too not only cities but villages too have progressed. We have done campaigns like gaon chalo abhiyans which have ensured that we are constantly engaging with rural voter base as well.

In states that BJP has not been historically strong, how are we thinking of growing our base there?

We have taken an initiative where we have gone to almost every home in Kerala asking for their donation for our membership and donation drive. I would like to share an anecdote from Kerala- we received a Rs300 money order from somebody who is from the minority community. Our karyakartas called back that gentlleman and that gentleman said that he had seen a flier somewhere asking for donation for party activities and through these donations you seek to fight the LS elections and make Mr. Modi the PM. This gentleman then said that for so many years he had been contributing to the Communist party and that he had given them more donations but he had never got a Thank You call back. I will not deny the challenges in the North-East and Bengal but we are working day and night to ensure that we bridge the gaps.

When is the BJP likely to announce the candidates?

I am not a member of the Election committee so I cannot make any such declaration but let me say this that our choice of candidates is extremely scientific. We have a conversation in our election committee which takes place and representatives come forth and put up their choice of candidates on the basis of winability, public approval. after procuring those names we get a scientific study done that give us a very very true picture. After that process the State committee brings it to the Central committee and decisions are taken accordingly.

Smriti Irani’s message to the Volunteers of Mission272+!

On republic day we launch a program called Mere Sapno ka Bharat on India 272. Mere Sapno ka Bharat is an opportunity for you to meet Narendra Modi. We are of the opinion that every Indian not only has the right to dream a dream but also has the right to ensure that the dream is fulfilled in their lifespan. we are introducing this program on India272 and if you have a message or a solution to a challenge that India faces now, record that message on your mobile phone, upload it to India272 . com. If your friends who are on Facebook like that message and if it gets 10 or more Likes get updates and the most popular messages and constructive messages are something that our specialists go through. We select the best messages and constructive ideas and present it to Narendra bhai and through this effort we will ensure that those who have give us messages and ideas have the opportunity to engage with Narendra bhai one on one so I look forward to being that bridge between those who come to India272.com in the hope of getting good governance, this is your chance, go upload your message on India272.com and meet the future prime Mister of India- Narendra Modi.