New Delhi: Despite a notice by the Election Commission of India, Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s openly communal remarks accusing the Congress of redistributing wealth to Muslims are being echoed by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)’s other star campaigners including party president J.P. Nadda, Union home minister Amit Shah and defence minister Rajnath Singh.
The Congress manifesto does not anywhere mention redistributing wealth in the country, let along among any community. Neither does it talk specifically about Muslims while allocating jobs, reservations, implementation of the Sachar Committee report, or bringing back triple talaq or beef. However, BJP’s star campaigners have continued to amplify misleading claims from the document, the Election Commission’s notice notwithstanding.
In a video address on Friday, Nadda echoed Modi’s remarks and accused the Congress of wanting to “snatch the rights of SC,ST and OBC” and give them to Muslims.
“Congress and the INDI alliance’s hidden agenda is to snatch the rights of the SC,ST and OBC and give them to Muslims. Congress says that the Muslims have the first right to the country’s resources. But prime minister Modi says that the first right to resources is of the poor of this country,” he said.
Illustration: Pariplab Chakraborty
Like Modi, Nadda misleadingly referred to former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s 2006 speech.
“Manmohan Singh did not give this speech by mistake but did so knowingly. Because he repeated in a press conference in April 2009 while answering an answer and said that minorities particularly Muslims should be given priority. False claims were made through the Sachar committee report and it was said that Muslims are worse off than Dalits. It means that the Congress had been making the ground for Muslims to be declared as SCs so that they can be given the reservation due to Dalits,” he said.
On Thursday – three days after Modi first made the remarks at a rally in Banaswara, Rajasthan – the Election Commission sent similar letters to the BJP and the Congress, addressing them to the party presidents Nadda and Mallikarjun Kharge, against Model Code of Conduct violations by their star campaigners.
The letters do not mention the alleged violators by name but identify them as “some of [the party’s] star campaigners”. However, the complaints that led to the notices – Congress complained against Modi and BJP, against Rahul Gandhi – are attached to the respective letters.
At Banswara on April 21, Modi said if Congress is voted to power, it could distribute the rally attenders’ mothers’ and sisters’ wealth among Muslims who he identified as “infiltrators” and “those who have more children”. He has made similar remarks at subsequent rallies too.
The speech has been heavily criticised and described in the global press as unprecedented hate speech.
Not just Nadda, the BJP’s other star campaigners including Shah and Rajnath – whose names figure at the top of every star campaigners lists for the party’s campaigns in various states in the Lok Sabha elections – have also since been echoing Modi’s remarks.
At a rally in Uttar Pradesh’s Dadri on Tuesday, Rajnath also referred to Manmohan’s speech.
“In 2006, at a meeting of the national defence council he said that the first right to the country’s resources is of the minorities and especially the Muslims. The country’s resources belong to everyone. He said this, not us. And when the prime minister said this they (opposition) have been creating a hungama (ruckus),” he said.
At a rally in Chhattisgarh’s Bemetara on Friday, Shah accused the Congress of claiming in its manifesto that it would bring Muslim personal laws and run the country on “Sharia law”.
“Congress party’s manifesto says, read it carefully, they have said they will bring personal laws again. What do they want to do by bringing Muslim personal laws? Can this country run on Sharia law? Can you bring back triple talaq? Congress party wants to bring the agenda of the Muslim League. But Rahul baba you will not be chosen and neither will triple talaq be brought back. CAA, triple talaq and Article 370 will not be touched,” he said.
At another rally in on the same day, Shah repeated the claim.
“See the Congress party’s manifesto. Read it carefully. They have said they will enforce personal law again. They want to bring Muslim personal law. Can this country run on Sharia law? Can you bring back triple talaq? Rahul baba you can do what you want for appeasement. As long as BJP is there we will not let personal laws come. It will run on UCC. we have brought it in Uttarakhand and it is our promise and Modi’s guarantee that we will enforce UCC across the country,” he said.
At a rally in Uttar Pradesh’s Etawah on Saturday, Adityanath said that the Congress and the Samajwadi Party would give reservations to Muslims.
“They will include Muslims in the 27% reservations for backward castes. Will you accept this? Can there be reservations on the basis of religion in India? Ambedkar had opposed reservations on the basis of religion and now they want to do this by attempting to divide the country,” he said.
He went on to claim that the Congress party manifesto, by suggesting that they would not stop people from eating what they like, implies slaughtering cows – and that is “playing with faith”.
“The Congress manifesto says dangerous things. After dividing the country in 1947, now they want to do a survey and x-ray of properties owned by Indians and then redistribute it. On your ancestral property, Congress and Samajwadi Party will take control. They are saying they will allow minorities to eat what they want. Is there a difference in the food between majority and minority communities in this country? Our majority community does not slaughter cows or eat cow meat. Now they want Muslims to have the freedom to slaughter cows. Will you accept this? Is this not playing with your faith?” he said.
