The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), in a bid to amplify its poll campaign, is now looking at reaching out to the masses with the 'Main Bhi Chowkidar' caller tune ahead of the Lok Sabha elections.
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), in a bid to amplify its poll campaign, is now looking at reaching out to the masses with the 'Main Bhi Chowkidar' caller tune ahead of the Lok Sabha elections.
As part of the move, subscribers of various mobile networks will now be able to access and download the caller tune.
'Main Bhi Chowkidar' was launched on Saturday by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. A day after the launch of the campaign, the Prime Minister, as well as a number of BJP leaders across the country, added the prefix 'chowkidar' to their Twitter handles as a mark of support to the poll campaign.
In the run-up to the Lok Sabha polls, Prime Minister Modi will address over 25 lakh 'chowkidars' (security guards) from across the country today via audio conference. He is also slated to address security guards from 500 locations who are associated with the 'Main Bhi Chowkidar' campaign, on March 31.
1. 'Whole country stands united as chowkidar'
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On Wednesday, PM Modi released a new video and wrote in Hindi: “They insulted the chowkidars, today the whole country stands united as a chowkidar. The term chowkidar has become synonymous with patriotism.”
इन्होंने चौकीदारों का अपमान किया, आज पूरा देश चौकीदार बनकर खड़ा हो गया है।
— Chowkidar Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) March 20, 2019
चौकीदार शब्द देशभक्ति का पर्याय बन गया है। pic.twitter.com/giG58jqJKr
On Saturday, Modi had urged his supporters to take the 'Main Bhi Chowkidar' (I too am watchman) pledge, saying he is not alone in the fight against graft and social evils. Since then, the BJP has stepped up its 'Main Bhi Chowkidar' campaign with the prime minister and other party leaders, including its president Amit Shah, prefixing the word 'chowkidar' to their names in their Twitter profiles as they sought people's support in the Lok Sabha elections.
2. Owaisi takes a jibe
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Taking a jibe at the BJP's 'Main Bhi Chowkidar' campaign ahead of the Lok Sabha elections, AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi said India wants an honest Prime Minister and not a 'Chowkidar'.
"Under your (Prime Minister's) nose terror attacks took place in Pathankot, Uri and, Pulwama. What kind of a 'Chowkidar' are you? India wants an honest Prime Minister, not a 'Chowkidar'," Owaisi said while addressing a rally here on Wednesday.
The AIMIM chief also asked why the Prime Minister was "afraid" of Swami Aseemanand. "If you are really a 'Chowkidar', then announce tomorrow itself that you will appeal against the decision taken by the court to acquit Aseemanand in Samjhauta blast case. Why are you so afraid of Aseemanand? Aseemanand, at one point of time, was associated with RSS," he said.
Owaisi's comments came hours after a special NIA court on Wednesday acquitted Swami Aseemanand and three others in the 2007 Samjhauta Express blast case.
3. Everyone understands chowkidar now: PM
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Prime Minister Narendra Modi took forward his party's 'chowkidar' pitch forward by holding an audio interaction with security guards from a number of locations. Modi, who is rooting for re-election, apologised for the 'disinformation' campaign being run using the word 'chowkidar' and said the word had now entered the vocabulary of even those Indian languages of which it was not previous a part.
Modi fielded questions and responded to comments from a handful of security guards telephonically in the party political event. He told them that the 'chokidar chor hai' campaign by opposition parties had instead had an unintended consequence.
"Maximum languages across the world have understood the word 'Chowkidaar', it seems as if they all have accepted it in their vocabulary," he told them.
"You must have noticed that these days everywhere it is you who is being discussed, be it TV or social media, be it in India or abroad. Today, every Indian is saying, 'main bhi chowkidar'," he claimed.
4. PM reaches out to security guards
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Modi also used the platform to reach out to security guards, much like his campaign had managed to weaponise the 'chaiwala' slur against him into a potent campaign slogan ahead of the 2014 Lok Sabha election. "I want to apologise as some people in last few months for their vested interests have run a disinformation campaign against 'chowkidars'. It is unfortunate that language of these people has hurt you," he said to the security guards.
He also responded to a man who claimed to be a security guard from Andhra Pradesh, saying, "I like how you said you are a security guard and so am I. As a security guard, I have considered it my duty to stand guard of certain things. It is my duty to ensure that poor people are able to carry forward without fear. I remember how much of a scary thing it used to be for people of a certain class if any of their family members had to get medical treatment. A number of schemes of my government are aimed to carrying out the duty of providing security to such families," he said.
