Agra (UP), Apr 25 :
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday once again repeated his charges against the Congress blaming it for politics of appeasement and alleging that the party has been trying to steal quotas meant for the Other Backward Classes (OBCs) while all this time preparing to institute reservation on the basis of religion.
Addressing an election rally in Agra, the PM said that Congress is a party which insults Baba Saheb, insults the Constitution and even destroys social justice almost every day. “The Constitution and the courts of the country have repeatedly forbidden Congress from doing so, but it is not desisting from its actions,” he said.
He said that every statement of Congress on the basis of religion has been rejected by the judiciary of the country. “Therefore now Congress has started playing the game from the back door. Now Congress has decided that it will bring reservation on the basis of religion. For this, Congress has found a way that out of the 27 percent OBC quota, some of it should be snatched away and reservation should be given on the basis of religion,” he said.
Modi said that the same Congress, sometimes in Karnataka, sometimes in Andhra Pradesh, has repeatedly advocated reservation on the basis of religion in its manifesto. “Sabka Saath, Sabha Vikas is Modi’s guarantee, but for INDI alliance of Samajwadi Party, Congress and others it is vote bank that comes first even before the country,” he said.
Without taking names of SP chief Akhilesh Yadav and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, he said that the friendship between two boys in Uttar Pradesh is also based on appeasement politics. “Both of them together talk about OBC-OBC in their speeches and want to snatch the rights of OBCs from the back door to strengthen their vote bank.
“Be it our 10-year track record or BJP’s manifesto, our emphasis is on saturation. Everyone should get the benefits of welfare schemes, they should get full benefits, without middlemen, without bribes and the deserving ones should definitely get it, this is the saturation model of BJP,” he said.
The PM said, “Our secularism is also the same that whatever scheme is made, everyone should get its benefits without any religion, caste or discrimination. When you fulfill everyone’s rights without discrimination without bribery it is called true social justice.”
He said, “Our path is not of appeasement
Cong wants
(tushtikaran), but of satisfaction (santushtikaran). But, the INDI alliance of SP-Congress is engaged in gross appeasement. The manifesto released by Congress for the 2024 elections has a 100 percent stamp of Muslim League.
“The entire manifesto of Congress is dedicated only to strengthening the vote bank, whereas, our manifesto is dedicated to strengthening the country.”
Modi said, “India’s growing power is not being liked by some forces. Now as the defence corridor is being built here, lethal weapons will be made for the country’s army, to become self-reliant and for export to the world.”
He said, “There are arms brokers all over the world, who had become experts in getting their work done by winning the confidence of old governments and the people sitting in power earlier also got to eat the cream in such deals. All such people are now upset and very angry. They do not want India’s army to become self-reliant. That is why they have united against Modi. To stop these forces, for the bright future of the country and for the security of the country, it is very important to bring the BJP and NDA government back once again.”
Appealing for the victory of the BJP candidate, the PM said, “Today I have come to ask you for something. I have come to seek your blessings for a developed India,” as he appealed voters to vote for his party.
Lashing out at the INDIA bloc, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said that the people of Uttar Pradesh and the OBC community need to be aware of the “dangerous game” played by the Opposition parties of trying to ‘snatch” their reservation rights and give it to their “vote banks”.
His remarks come in the wake of the row that erupted after the National Commission for Backward Castes pointed out that the Karnataka government has categorised the entire Muslim community in the state under the OBC category causing ‘injustice’ to the people of the OBC community. Taking a jibe at the Congress-Samajwadi Party alliance, PM Modi said that the foundation of friendship between the two boys in UP (Rahul Gandhi and Akhilesh Yadav) is “appeasement politics.”
Addressing a public meeting in Agra on Thursday, PM Modi said, “Remember in 2012, right before the UP Assembly polls, Congress had tried something similar. They had tried to give a part of the OBC reservation to minorities on the basis of religion. But they couldn’t succeed in their intentions.”
“The people of UP and especially the OBC community will have to understand this dangerous game of SP-Congress. Dalits, backwards will have to understand this game of SP-Congress,” he added.
He alleged that the Karnataka Congress government has “secretly robbed” the rights of the OBCs and they want to do the same thing with backward communities everywhere they get into power.
“The Congress government in Karnataka has overnight turned all the Muslim castes in Karnataka into OBCs by stamping a paper and told them to become the owners of this 27 per cent and loot it. They have robbed the rights of the OBCs. The Congress intends to play the same game in UP, to perform the same feat, wherever they get a chance in the country, they want to secretly rob the rights of the OBCs, SCs, and STs from the back door and give them away. And in this, the Samajwadi Party is also fully supporting them,” PM Modi said.
The Prime Minister also accused Congress of advocating religion-based reservations despite court restrictions.
“The same Congress has repeatedly advocated for reservations based on religion in their manifestos, whether in Karnataka or Andhra Pradesh. The Constitution and the courts of the country have repeatedly forbidden Congress from doing so, rejecting every argument they have made… Congress has now resolved to bring reservations based on religion, and for this, they have found a way to steal from the 27 per cent quota for OBCs, to quietly snatch away and give reservations based on religion,” he further said.
He further said that the Samajwadi Party is betraying the Yadav community only (considered traditional voters of SP) for their “appeasement and vote bank politics.”
“SP and Congress want to snatch the rights that are granted to these communities by the Constitution and give it to their vote banks. For the vote bank, Samajwadi Party is betraying Yadavs and backward communities. Both Congress and SP are drenched in appeasement politics and have similar thinking. In speeches, they talk about OBC, but through the back door, want to give their rights to their vote banks,” the Prime Minister said.
Attacking the INDIA bloc further, PM Modi said that as long as he is there, no one can commit the “sin” of taking away the rights of SC, ST, OBC and the ‘mangalsutra’ of women.
“Will you let go of your property to the corrupt SP-Congress alliance? Before looting the SC, ST and OBC rights and eyeing women’s mangal sutra- ‘Jab tak Modi zinda hain, aisa koi bhi paap karne se pehle aapko Modi se nipatna padega’…”
Prime Minister Modi also attacked the Samajwadi Party government in UP for their government in 2012-17 and said that lands of common people were grabbed by others.
“Before Yogi government, the slogan of INDI alliance was ‘jo zameen sarkari hai, wo zameen humari hai’. This no longer happens under Yogi ji’s rule, so you all might have forgotten, but I want to remind you all…after Yogi government came to power, these people were sent to the right place,” he further said.
In Uttar Pradesh in the 2019 general elections, the BJP emerged triumphant, securing 62 out of 80 seats in Uttar Pradesh, supplemented by two seats clinched by its ally Apna Dal (S). Mayawati’s BSP managed to secure 10 seats, while Akhilesh Yadav’s SP garnered five. The Congress Party secured only one seat.
Uttar Pradesh sends the maximum number of MPs, 80 in total, to Parliament. The first phase of voting in the state has already taken place on April 19.
The remaining Lok Sabha constituencies in Uttar Pradesh will cast their votes in the subsequent phases of the election, namely, Phase 2 on April 26, Phase 3 on May 7, Phase 4 on May 13, Phase 5 on May 20, Phase 6 on May 25, and Phase 7 on June 1. The counting of votes will occur on June 4.
