Manas Dasgupta
NEW DELHI, Apr 6: Continuing BJP’s attack on the Congress for its Lok Sabha election manifesto, the Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday said the Congress election manifesto was a bundle of lies and “every page of the document reeks of attempts to tear India apart.”
Addressing a series of election rallies in Ajmer in Rajasthan, Saharanpur and Ghaziabad in Uttar Pradesh, Mr Modi said the Congress manifesto had the “stamp of the Muslim League and the Left.” Mr Modi, without explaining the reason for drawing the comparison, said the manifesto resemble those of the Muslim League during the pre-Independence period and that the present Congress had moved away from the Congress of the Freedom Movement. “It neither has policies in national interest nor a vision for national development.”
With the Congress also holding a rally in Rajasthan’s capital city of Jaipur, Mr Modi said, “The Congress issued a bundle of lies in the form of its manifesto which has unmasked the party. Every page reeks of attempts to tear India apart. It reflects the thoughts that the Muslim League had before Independence. The Congress wants to impose the Muslim League’s thoughts from that era on the India of today. And what is remaining of the manifesto is dominated by communist and leftist thoughts,” PM Modi said in Hindi.
The Congress has hit back at the Prime Minister and said he “does not know his history.” Criticising Mr Modi, the Congress said the PM did not know his history and pointed out that Jan Sangh founder and BJP ideologue Shyama Prasad Mookerjee himself was part of a coalition government in Bengal with the Muslim League in the early 1940s.
“The Prime Minister does not know his history. It was, in fact, none other than Mookerjee, the president of the Hindu Mahasabha then, who was himself part of the coalition government in Bengal with the Muslim League… It is the BJP, not the Congress, that believes in and practices the politics of divisiveness,” Congress General Secretary Jairam Ramesh said.
The Congress manifesto, released in Delhi on Friday, focuses on job creation and infrastructure development and also has the party’s promise of a caste census, which has been a major focal point since the Bihar government released the results of a caste survey last year. The manifesto also promises a minimum support price, which has been a key demand of farmers, as well as universal free healthcare.
Claiming that the Congress of today was bereft of principles and policies, the Prime Minister said it was apparent that the party has outsourced everything. He then went on to ask whether such a party could do anything that would be in the country’s interest, eliciting a loud “no” from the people in the audience.
“If you look at the manifesto, it is clear that they want to push India back into the past century… The Congress has never bothered about nari shakti (women power). Generations of women have suffered after Independence. Shouldn’t a Congress like this be punished? Use your vote on April 19 and punish the Congress,” the PM said.
Highlighting the schemes for the construction of toilets and providing LPG cylinders, tap water and nutrition for pregnant women, the PM said his government care not just for women but even the babies that are about to be born.
“My brave daughters could not join the Army, Modi opened those doors. I opened the doors of the Sainik schools. We ensured six months of maternity leave for women and also passed a law for reservation for our mothers and daughters in legislatures… I am proud that women in our villages, who could not ride cycles, are now flying drones and ISRO projects are also being handled by women,” PM Modi said.
“You may think a lot has been done, but let me tell you my mann ki baat. All this was just a trailer, we will take our country forward much further. Your dreams are my commitment. We have to make India a developed nation by 2047,” he added.
Reaching out to the minority vote, Mr Modi said his government was practising true secularism and social justice because “our schemes don’t differentiate between beneficiaries.” Charging the Congress for “saving the corrupt,” Mr Modi said while “the BJP is driven by a mission, the Congress is working to earn commission.” Elaborating on the mission, he underlined the construction of the Ram Temple, the abrogation of the Article 370 and the law against Triple Talaq.
Clarifying that Triple Talaq didn’t only benefit Muslim women, Mr Modi said it helped Muslim families. “No father or brother wants her daughter or sister to return home. For centuries, Muslim women would thank him for bringing a strong law against Triple Talaq,” he added.
Mr Modi also said under his government the country was getting global acclaim. “Duniya Main Bharat ka danka baj rah hai,” he repeated twice. In Ajmer, Mr Modi continued his attack on the Congress saying, “The Leftists have taken over whatever was left of this manifesto bearing the stamp of the Muslim League. It seems as if Congress has given everything on contract and has outsourced the entire party.”