Taking a jibe at the PM’s ‘Main Bhi Chowkidar’ campaign for the 2019 poll season, senior Congress leader Kapil Sibal targeted the Prime Minister for forgetting about his bonhomie with “chaiwalas” and shifting to remembering “chowkidars”. He also pointed out that the Pradhan Sevak can focus on something else “next time” for political gains.
The former Union minister also accused PM Modi of politicising the Balakot air strikes and asked whether the ‘chowkidar’ (watchman) was sleeping when terror attacks took place in Gurdaspur, Pathankot, Uri, Baramulla, and Pulwama.
In the run-up to the 2014 Lok Sabha polls, BJP launched a massive election campaign highlighting Modi as a ‘chaiwala’ (tea-seller) to connect with the masses after Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar dubbed him a chaiwala. Since then, Modi has often called himself a chaiwala.
This time, the PM launched the ‘Mai Bhi Chowkidar’ campaign after Congress President Rahul Gandhi relentlessly targeted the PM with the “Chowkidar Chor Hai” (watchman is a thief) jibe, while alleging corruption and favouritism in the Rafale fighter jet deal while the government rejected the charges.
