JAIPUR, Apr 23:
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday said the Congress tried to extend reservation on the basis of religion and give it to Muslims, and once again accused the party of hatching a “deep conspiracy” to snatch people’s wealth and distribute it among “select” people.Launching a blistering attack on the Congress, Modi also charged that it is difficult to follow one’s faith under the Congress and that even listening to Hanuman Chalisa becomes crime under that party’s rule.
His remarks come on a day when the country is celebrating Hanuman Jayanti.
Addressing an election rally in Tonk, the prime minister said as soon as the Congress formed the government at the Centre in 2004, one of its first tasks was to reduce the SC/ST reservation in Andhra Pradesh and give it to Muslims.
“Modi is giving you a guarantee with an open heart that reservation for Dalits and backward tribals will neither end nor will it be allowed to be divided in the name of religion,” he said.
Asserting that he understands the Constitution, Modi said he is dedicated to the Constitution and is a person who worships B R Ambedkar.
Amid a row over his ‘redistribution of wealth’ remarks, the prime minister again charged that the Congress will snatch people’s wealth and distribute it to select people. Modi said the then prime minister Manmohan Singh had given a speech in which he had said that Muslims have the first right on the resources of the country.
“This was not a coincidence. This is not a single statement. Congress’ ideology has always been of appeasement and vote bank politics. As soon as the Congress formed the government at the Centre in 2004, one of the first things it did was to reduce the SC/ST reservation in Andhra Pradesh and give it to Muslims,” he said.
“This was a pilot project which the Congress wanted to try in the entire country. Between 2004 and 2010, the Congress tried to implement Muslim reservation in Andhra Pradesh four times but due to legal hurdles and the awareness of the Supreme Court, it could not fulfil its intention,” he said.
“In 2011, the Congress tried to implement it throughout the country. They played a game of snatching away the rights given to SC, ST and OBC and giving them to others for vote bank politics. The Congress did this deliberately and without caring about the Constitution and B R Ambedkar,” he said.
“I want to ask the Congress will it declare that will it divide the reservation for Dalits and backward tribals and give it to Muslims,” he said.
Modi said when the BJP government in Karnataka got an opportunity, the first thing it did was to abolish the Muslim quota which was created by snatching it from ST
and SC.
