Congress believes it was born to rule India: Modi

Mumbai: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday slammed the Congress for believing “it was born to rule the country”. Mr. Modi said because of such a mentality, Congress hindered the progress of Dalits, backward classes and Adivasis after Independence. He also alleged that the Congress wants to divide the Adivasi community into castes and weaken them.

Addressing a rally at Chimur in Chandrapur district, Mr. Modi said that the huge turnout for the rally indicates that the Mahayuti — alliance of BJP, Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena and Ajit Pawar-led NCP — will retain power in Maharashtra with a massive majority.

Asking people to be wary of Congress’s divisive policies, the PM said, “Congress and its allies have been politically benefiting from violence and separatism. Take the example of Jammu and Kashmir, which has been burning for decades due to separatism and terrorism. The law under which all this happened was Article 370. It was a legacy of Congress. As soon as we abolished it, we fully integrated Kashmir with India and its Constitution.”

The PM further alleged that the Congress’s call for caste census was an attempt to divide Scheduled Tribes, Scheduled Castes and Other Backward Class into smaller groups. Reiterating his slogan “ek rahenge toh safe rahenge”, he said, “The tribal population in our country is around ten per cent. Congress wants to divide them into castes and weaken them. Congress wants you to fight internally and break your unity. If the Adivasi community gets divided into castes, it will end its identity and strength… We don’t have to become a part of Congress conspiracy and we have to stay united.”

The BJP has fielded its two-term MLA Kirtikumar alias Bunty Bhangdiya from the Chimur seats, which has significant tribal population.

Mr. Modi further accused the Congress of playing politics of caste and class to remain in power since Independence. “This is the reason that after Independence, the Congress never allowed Dalits, backward classes and Adivasis to progress,” he said.

Later in the day, the PM addressed another rally at Solapur, where he said the Maha Vikas Aghadi — alliance of Congress, Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray) and NCP (Sharad Pawar) — cannot give a stable government in Maharashtra as all three parties were busy fighting for the chief minister’s post.

“There is a stampede in the MVA for the CM’s post. One party remains busy the whole day in declaring its leader as the chief minister, while other parties remain busy in rejecting its claim. Whose condition is like this before the elections, they can never give a stable government to Maharashtra,” Mr. Modi said.

Shiv Sena (UBT) wanted the MVA to declare its chief ministerial candidate before the election. The party was hoping that its leader Uddhav Thackeray would be the obvious choice for the post. However, the Congress and NCP (SP) opposed the demand and insisted the party winning the maximum number of seats in the alliance would get the CM’s post.

Mr. Modi also hit out at the Congress for its “failure to resolve issues” despite remaining in power for several decades. “The Congress governed the country for decades, but left many issues unresolved. They kept people preoccupied with various problems. This has become their typical work culture. As a result of this approach, the farmers in Maharashtra have suffered for many years,” he said.

Referring to water scarcity in Solapur district, Mr.Modi said, “In this region, Congress and its allies failed to address irrigation issues effectively. In contrast, the Mahayuti government focused on resolving these problems. Thanks to our efforts, the water table in several villages in Solapur is now rising.”

Mr. Modi has held seven election rallies in Maharashtra so far, including the three he addressed on Tuesday. He is scheduled to address at least seven more rallies in the state.

However, NCP (SP) chief Sharad Pawar downplayed Mr. Modi’s impact and said there was no reason to give much importance to his rallies. He argued that the BJP loses seats wherever Mr. Modi campaigns. “During the Lok Sabha election, Mr. Modi addressed rallies in 16 Lok Sabha constituencies.The BJP lost 10-12 of those. It is the right of the Prime Minister to address election rallies. There is no need to pay much attention to it,” the veteran politician said.

Meanwhile, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, who also addressed an election rally at Gondia, reiterated that his party is fighting to save the Constitution while the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh and BJP are trying to destroy it. Targeting Mr. Modi, the Congress leader said, “I can guarantee that the Prime Minister has not even read it.”