NaMo on the Big Dig

Taking a dig at the Centre for its “gold hunt”, BJP’s PM candidate Narendra Modi urged the government to bring back the black money allegedly stashed in Swiss banks.
“The government has started to dig for some 1,000 tonnes gold, after someone dreamt of it. You bring back the money that the looters have stashed in Swiss banks. That would be more than the value of 1,000 tonnes of gold,” Modi said while addressing BJP workers upon his arrival in Chennai for a day’s visit.
The Gujarat chief minister was apparently mocking at the excavation work being undertaken by the Archaeological Survey of India in Unnao in Uttar Pradesh to hunt for a gold treasure. The expedition was triggered by a seer’s dream predicting the presence of about 1,000 tonnes of gold in the area.
Modi said the deadly cyclone Phailin which hit parts of Odisha, Andhra Pradesh, West Bengal and Bihar did not destroy much as it was feared, but the country was witnessing a cyclone of change to ensure a “Congress-mukt (Congress-free) Bharat”.
He said he has been witnessing a wave of change in the country, including in Tamil Nadu, for a change of government at the Centre.
Later, speaking at a function in the city, the Gujarat CM also targeted the UPA government over its foreign policy as well as military modernization, saying that because of its “dysfunctioning” the country was facing great pressure from Pakistan and China.
“Today, the current dysfunction in Delhi has prevented even the much-needed military modernization and upgradation of India’s defence infrastructure. As a result, the Indian armed forces are under great pressure from the northern and western frontiers,” he said.
He also said no other country suffered due to terrorism like India in the recent past. “It is central to our foreign policy as terrorism is driven from abroad. We need to unite the world against terrorism,” he underlined.

Congress has slammed Narendra Modi for mocking ASI’s treasure hunt in Unnao, saying the move could benefit the country and there was no harm in going for it. Party spokesperson Renuka Chowdhury rebutted Modi’s charge that the exercise was undertaken on the basis of a sadhu’s dream about 1,000 tonnes of gold lying buried under the fort in Unnao district, claiming the ASI’s excavation was based on a report of Geological Survey of India that there could be metal buried underground.