“Chun chun kar saaf kar do” — Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday called on voters in Uttarakhand to “handpick each and every one of” those expressing apprehensions over his intentions and “erase them”.

At a rally in Delhi’s Ramlila Maidan on Sunday, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi had said that if the BJP wins the election through “match-fixing” and changes the Constitution, the country would be “set ablaze” and it would not survive.

Speaking at an election gathering in Rudrapur of Pauri Garhwal district, Modi said: “Modi ke prayason ke beech Congress aur INDI gathbandhan ne apna irada dikha diya hai. Congress ke shahi parivaar ke shahzade ne elan kiya hai ki agar desh me teesri baar BJP sarkar ko chuna to aag lag jaegi. Saath saal tak desh par raj karne wale dus saal satta se bahar kya rahe, ab desh mein aag lagane ki baat kar rahe hain. Kya yeh aag lagane ki baat aapko manzoor hai? Kya is desh ko aag lagane denge? Kya aag lagane ki ye bhasha uchit hai? Kya ye aag lagane wali loktantra ki bhasha hai?”

A translation: “Amid Modi’s efforts, the Congress and the INDI alliance have shown their true intentions. The Yuvaraj of the royal family of the Congress has declared that India would be aflame if the BJP comes to power the third time. Those who lorded over the country for 60 years are now trying to talk about putting the country on fire because they are out of power for 10 years. Are such inflammatory comments right? Will you allow them to set the country on fire? Is such language acceptable? Is this the language of democracy?”

“Aese logon ko saza karoge? Pakki saza karoge? Chun chun kar saaf kar do. Is baar inko maidan me mat rahne do (Won’t you punish these people? Won’t you? Handpick each and every one of them and erase them. Don’t let them stay in the field this time),” the Prime Minister added. “The Congress doesn’t believe in democracy and is provoking people. They believe in Emergency and anarchy, they want to destabilise India.”

Modi asserted that the action against the corrupt would continue. “Don’t you think the corrupt should go to jail? The corrupt are threatening and abusing me. But they can’t deter me. Action against each one of the corrupt will continue,” he said.

The Prime Minister’s remarks come amid an Opposition onslaught on the ruling party in the wake of the arrest of Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal and then Jharkhand chief minister Hemant Soren in connection with separate corruption cases.

Thumping his chest, Modi said: “Your dreams are Modi’s commitment.”

The Prime Minister made no mention of the key issues of Uttarakhand, which include illegal constructions in the hills that have led to land subsidence in Joshimath and other areas, frequent paper leaks of employment-related examinations, killing of a Sikh religious leader in Udham Singh Nagar and the murder of a receptionist in Rishikesh allegedly by the son of a now-suspended BJP leader who has also been accused of running a prostitution racket.

Modi claimed that migration from the state had stopped in recent years and said: “The time is nearing when our friends who have gone to the cities will come back.”

Migration of youths in search of jobs is a major problem in the hill state. There are villages that have become empty because of lack of employment opportunities. It is also an election issue in the state.

Modi promised that very soon the people would get free power because they would be generating it themselves. “Your power bill will be zero. We have started a scheme under which the government will help you install solar panels in your houses. On an average, a family uses 300 units of electricity a month and you can sell the extra power (to the government),” he said.