NEW DELHI, Mar 25: The BJP is launching a major outreach programme for the minorities including Muslim, Sikh and Christians, by distributing festive kits called “Saugat-e-Modi” (gifts from Prime Minister Modi) on the occasion of Eid, Baisakhi and Easter.
According to the BJP’s minority morcha chief Jamal Siddiqui, the outreach was planned as three festivals were coming up in successive weeks — Eid at the end of March, Baisakhi on April 14 and Easter on April 20.
The outreach is significant as it at a time when the government is facing backlash from sections of the Muslim community over the Waqf Amendment Bill. Major Muslim organisations had boycotted Bihar Chief Minister and BJP ally Nitish Kumar’s Iftaar event over the Bill.
Bihar goes to the polls later this year, and the boycott by All India Muslim Personal Law Board, Imarat-e-Sharia, Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind, Jamiat Ahle Hadith, Jamal-e-Islami Hind, Khanqah Mujibia and Khanqah Rahmani of the Iftaar event made headlines.
In a letter to Mr Kumar, these organisations had said: “You had come to power on the promise of secular government and protection of the rights of minorities, but your alliance with the Bharatiya Janata Party and your support to the illogical and unconstitutional Waqf Amendment Bill is a blatant violation of your same promises.”
The kit comprising dry fruits, besan (gram flour), suji (semolina), sewai (vermicelli), sugar and a salwar kameez set will be distributed to about 32 lakh people from the three faiths. “We have around 32,000 volunteers for the programme across the country, and each of them have been asked to reach out to 100 households of different faiths. If they have an issue making contact with these households, they have been asked to coordinate with the local mosque, gurdwara or church for the same,” said Mr Siddiqui.
“This is part of the BJP’s outreach and a way to demonstrate the ‘sabka saath, sabka vikas’ philosophy of the Narendra Modi government,” he said. Mr Siddiqui, however, dismissed any connection between the distribution of the kits and the Waqf Bill or the Bihar polls. “Polls take place every year in some part of India or other, does that mean we don’t do such good works?” he said.
When asked as to what the financial outlay was for the kit distribution programme, Mr Siddiqui demurred, “saugat ki koi keemat nahin hoti, (gifts are priceless),” he said.
(Manas Dasgupta)
