Hours after the Indian Air Force (IAF) carried out pre-dawn air strikes against terror launch pads in Pakistan, Prime Minister Narendra Modi issued a strong message reassuring people that the country was in safe hands and the Union government would take all measures to protect the country. Political parties, including the opposition, closed ranks on the issue and rallied behind the government and the security forces, putting aside their differences for now despite the forthcoming general election. This is in line with the opposition’s stance of backing anti-terror actions after the Pulwama attack. “I want to assure the people of India that the country is in safe hands. I would not let the country suffer. I will save the honour of the country. I will not let the country bow down," Modi said at a public meeting in Churu, Rajasthan, just hours after foreign secretary Vijay Gokhale confirmed the air strikes. The votes of the people would make the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and him stronger while weakening those who are planning to form a coalition government, Modi said. “The votes of the people would give strength to BJP and me. It will also weaken those who believe they can form a coalition government and a weak government at the centre," he said. BJP president Amit Shah also congratulated the armed forces. “I congratulate and salute the bravery and valour of our armed forces. Today’s action further demonstrates that India is safe and secure under the strong & decisive leadership of PM Narendra Modi," Shah wrote on Twitter. National security and terrorism have emerged as key issues for the forthcoming general election after the Pulwama attack earlier this month. Opposition parties maintained their stance of supporting anti-terror actions and backed the government and complimented security forces over the air strikes. One of the earliest opposition reactions came from Congress president Rahul Gandhi. “I salute the pilots of the IAF," Gandhi wrote on Twitter. After the Pulwama attack, Gandhi said at a press conference at the party’s headquarters that his party and other opposition parties stood with the government and security forces on anti-terrorism measures. “IAF also means India’s Amazing Fighters. Jai Hind," Mamata Banerjee, West Bengal chief minister and Trinamool Congress chief wrote on Twitter. Bahujan Samaj Party chief Mayawati, too, complimented the air force for its “brave" work but said it would have been better if the BJP-led government “had given a free hand to the armed forces earlier". Others who also lauded the action included Punjab chief minister Captain Amarinder Singh, Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal, National Conference leader Omar Abdullah and Shiromani Akali Dal patron Parkash Singh Badal. Later in the day, foreign minister Sushma Swaraj hosted an all-party meeting to brief allies and opposition parties over the security situation. After the Pulwama attacks too, home minister Rajnath Singh had called for an all-party meet. “I am happy that all representatives in the meeting in one voice complimented the Indian Air Force and then assured support for any anti-terror action being taken by the government. Everyone was united above party lines," Swaraj told ANI after the meeting. “In the meeting, we praised the efforts by the security forces and they have always had our support to end terrorism. Another good thing was that it was a clean operation which specifically targeted terrorists and terror camps," leader of opposition in the Rajya Sabha, Ghulam Nabi Azad of the Congress said after the meeting. Subscribe to Mint Newsletters * Enter a valid email * Thank you for subscribing to our newsletter. Never miss a story! Stay connected and informed with Mint. Download our App Now! !<doc-sep>He also mentioned that today is a day to pay homage to India's Bravehearts. He wants to assure that the country is in safe hands. | Photo Credit: ANI New Delhi: Following the air strike on the terror launch pad, Prime Minister Narendra Modi made his first public comments on Tuesday. PM addressed a public rally in Churu district of Rajasthan. The PM mentioned that salute our armed forces and all fellow Indians and bowed down to the public. Here are the key highlights of the speech. 1. PM Narendra Modi said that the country is in safe hands and he will not let the country down. He stressed that there is nothing above the nation. 2. He also mentioned that today is a day to pay homage to India's Bravehearts. He wants to assure that the country is in safe hands. 3. He also mentioned, "Today, I repeat what I said back in 2014 - "Saugandh mujhe is mitti ki, main desh nahi mitne doonga, main desh nahi rukne doonga, main desh nahi jhukne doonga.... Mera vachan hai Bharat maa ko, tera sheesh nahi jhukne doonga.." which loosely translated, means: "I take a vow, swearing by Mother India, I shall not let my motherland face defeat, humiliation, annihilation. I won't let its growth stop or slow down." PM Narendra Modi in Churu, Rajasthan: Within next 10 years Rs 7.5 Lakh Crore will be deposited in the accounts of farmers. They will not have to do anything for it. They will directly get a notification on their mobile phones, saying that they have received the amount. pic.twitter.com/bBt1Ovd5Dm — ANI (@ANI) February 26, 2019 4. News agency ANI reported, PM also mentioned that within the next 10 years Rs 7.5 Lakh Crore will be deposited in the accounts of farmers. The farmers will not have to do anything for it and they will directly get a notification on their mobile phones. Also Read: India strikes back: 'Not only 300 but all terrorists in Pakistan should be eliminated': CRPF martyr's wife<doc-sep>Prime Minister Narendra Modi attacked the Congress government in Rajasthan, saying it is denying the small farmers the benefit of the direct cash transfer scheme of his government by not providing a list of those eligible. There should not be politics on such an issue, he said at a public rally. "Rajasthan has not provided list of farmers for the scheme launched by the Centre. Welfare of poor and farmers is the priority of our government but it is sad that schemes meant for them are subjected to politics," he said. "You should not worry. We are after them and will make sure that they submit the list and the benefits reach the farmers," the prime minister said referring to the recently launched PM Kisan Samman Yojna. "The first instalment of Rs 2,000 was transferred to the bank accounts of more than one crore farmers of the country under the PM Kisan Sammna Nidhi Yojna launched from Gorakhpur of Uttar Pradesh. We are going to give this benefit to more than 12 crore small farmers'' families and more than 50 lakhs farmers from Rajasthan," he said. PM Modi said there is not a single farmer from Rajasthan among those benefited because the state government has not provided a list of beneficiaries to the Centre. He added that states like Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Gujarat and Tamil Nadu have already provided their lists to the Centre. PM Modi said Rs 7.5 lakh crore would be transferred to the bank accounts of small farmers under the PM-Kisan scheme. In the interim Budget 2019-20, the central government had announced the PM-Kisan scheme under which Rs 6,000 per year will be given in three instalments to 12 crore small and marginal farmers holding cultivable land up to two hectares. Referring to the Ayushmaan Bharat scheme, the PM said more than 13 lakh people in the country have received free treatment under the drive but not a single person from Rajasthan was among them as the Congress government has showed no seriousness to associate with the programme. The prime minister said the country was moving ahead with the sentiment of ''Jai Jawan, Jai Kisan and Jai Vigyan'' and his government was working on the ''Sabka Saath Sabka Vikas'' model. "We are trying to achieve such targets which no one could think of achieving before," he said, highlighting the number of affordable houses constructed for the poor in the last four years. PM Modi said the GST council recently decided to slash the GST rate on affordable housing and hence, middle class families were now able to realise the dream of owning a house. He said while the interest rate on home loans was more than 10 per cent during the previous government, it has now come down to 8-9 per cent. Along with this, he said the definition of affordable houses has been revised and now, houses with carpet area of up to 60 square metres in Delhi-NCR, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Chennai, Mumbai and Kolkata will be considered as affordable houses and houses of up to 90 square metres carpet area in non-metro cities will be considered as affordable houses.<doc-sep>Tamil Nadu Chief Minister K Palaniswami on February 26 lauded Prime Minister Narendra Modi for India's air strikes on terror launch pads in Pakistan, commending him for his "bold" efforts against terrorism. Modi was tasting success in rooting out terrorism, which was threatening the entire world, the chief minister said in a statement and lauded him on behalf of the people of Tamil Nadu. "I extend my greetings to Prime Minister Narendra Modi due to whose bold functioning, a successful air strike has been carried out which has demolished terror camps in Pakistan," Palaniswami said. In pics | Surgical strike 2.0: Here's what we know about IAF airstrikes on JeM terror camps India conducted a major preemptive strike on a Jaish-e-Mohammed training camp on February 26, killing a "very large number" of terrorists, trainers and senior commanders The strike comes amid heightened tension between India and Pakistan following the February 14 suicide attack by Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Mohammad terror group in Kashmir's Pulwama district that killed 40 CRPF soldiers.<doc-sep>
New Delhi: India is in safe hands, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said in his first address hours after Indian Air Force warplanes struck a Jaish-e-Mohammed training camp deep in Pakistani territory while speaking at a campaign rally in Churu, Rajasthan. Modi’s speech carried the clear message for his constituents that the BJP government at the Centre wouldn’t take terror attacks engineered by non-state actors in Pakistan lying down. He also recited the BJP anthem for 2014 election campaign, which was composed by Prasoon Joshi, as he attempted to address party’s core constituency which has favoured a muscular approach in dealing with cross-border terrorism. “Today I repeat what I said back in 2014 - Saugandh mujhe is mitti ki main desh nahi mitne doonga, main desh nahi rukne doonga, main desh nahi jhukne doonga. (The perfume of my country, I won’t let the country be erased, I won’t let the country stop, I won’t let the country bow down),” he said. However, in the well-crafted address that would have been closely watched both in India and international community, the Prime Minister did not elaborate on the early morning strike inside Pakistan. Framed by the photographs of the 40 CRPF jawans who had died during the Pulwama attack, Modi said, "I want to assure you, the people of the country that India is in safe hands.” Modi in fact chose not to escalate the political rhetoric vis-à-vis Pakistan, giving enough leeway to Pakistan to frame a considered and structured view in the wake of Pulwama attacks and India’s response to it. He, instead, focused on domestic issues – and reiterated that the choice for electorate was clear – between that of a ‘majboot’ government and a majboor government, the PM’s terminology for if a coalition government comes to power. Unlike the surgical strike post Uri attacks – when a military commander was asked to brief the media on the operational details –foreign secretary Vijay Gokhale, a career diplomat, was asked to share a terse statement on Balakot bombings this morning. India called the morning raids as “non-military pre-emptive actions against terrorists”. The government has called a meeting of opposition parties later in the day to brief them on the current situation on the western front and the action taken by Indian Air Force against Pakistan bases terror outfits. Foreign minister Sushma Swaraj personally spoke to leaders of various political parties this morning invited them for a briefing in the evening. Earlier on Tuesday, 12 Indian Force Mirage-2000 jets crossed the Line of Control (LoC) and destroyed terror camps of Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Mohammed in Balakot, said the MEA. Foreign secretary Vijay Gokhale confirmed the air strike and said a large number of JeM terrorists, trainers and senior commanders were eliminated in largest JeM camp in Balakot.