Gogoi has stopped smiling after first phase: Modi

Raha (Assam), April 8 Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday said that Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi had stopped smiling after the heavy polling in the first phase of assembly elections.

And the Congress leadership cannot save the party from defeat in the polls, the second and final phase of which will be conducted on Monday, he told an election rally here in Nagaon district.

Modi arrived in Assam on Friday to campaign for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Polling for 61 constituencies will take place on Monday. 

The prime minister arrived here after visiting the Kamakhya temple in AssamÂ’s main city Guwahati. He is expected to address another two rallies at Rangia in Kamrup district and Maligaon in Guwahati on Friday.

“I thank the people of Assam for the unprecedented high percentage of voting in the first phase," Modi said, addressing the crowd in Hindi. 

"You must have noticed that the Assam chief minister has stopped smiling after the first phase. He is now inviting the Congress leaders from Delhi to save him. 

"But how can they (Congress leaders) save Gogoiji when they could not even save Delhi?" he asked, referring to the 2014 Lok Sabha polls.

In an obvious dig at Congress president Sonia Gandhi, Modi said Congress leaders were more concerned about “their own sons and daughters". 

He said he had come to Assam to seek the people's support to bring about a change of government in the state.

Modi said he had not seen another state in India apart from Assam where he claimed the entire population lived below poverty line (BPL). 

“There are states in India where there are 20 or 30 percent BPL population. But the Congress in Assam has turned the entire population of the state poor as BPL."

Appealing to the people of Assam to vote for the BJP and its allies, he said there should be a new government in the state in the new year. 

A total of 65 constituencies in Assam saw a record 82.20 percent polling in the first phase on April 4.