'Give me 60 months to pull the country out of its troubles'

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday hit back at Congress chief Sonia Gandhi for accusing his government of not fulfilling poll promises, saying those seeking account of his performance in 4 months in power, have done little in the last 60 years.

Addressing an election rally here, the pocket borough of late Gopinath Munde, Modi said, "They want an account of my work...what have they done in the past 60 years. Give me 60 months and I will pull the country out of the troubles," he said.

The state will go for Assembly elections on October 15 and bypoll to the Beed Lok Sabha seat will also be held on the same day. The bypoll was necessitated following the death of Union Minister Munde in a road mishap in Delhi soon after the Modi government came to power.

Attacking the former Congress-NCP alliance which ruled the state till recently, he said both the parties belong to the same 'gotra' (clan). "They are not rashtravadi (nationalist) but bhrastacharvadi (corrupt)," he said. The prime minister also sought complete majority for the BJP in the state, saying the party was required for development.

He said while 3,700 farmers commit suicide in the state annually, the UPA government in Delhi failed to provide them with water for irrigation.

"If the farmer is provided with water and electricity he can turn the fields into goldmine," he said.

Referring to his recent US and Japan visits and the visit of Chinese President Xi Jinping, Modi said people must be wondering how the state will benefit out of the bilateral engagements.

He said industrial parts in the state and high speed rail link between Mumbai and Ahmedabad will help generate employment for the youth.

Recalling Munde's leadership, he said had the late BJP leader been alive, there was no need for him to come to Beed for election rally.

He also used the platform to spread the word about the 'Swachh Bharat Mission' kicked off by him on October 2.

"Do not forget to carry the water bottles and paper from the rally ground. Do not leave the litter behind. Would you remember this," he said.

The BJP is not contesting the assembly polls with its previous ally Shiv Sena after the two parted ways recently.