Congress, AAP Are Liars, Don't Vote For 'Urban Naxals': Amit Shah In Bharuch Rally

Bharuch: Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Saturday came down heavily on the Congress and Aam Aadmi Party and dubbed them as 'urban Naxals'. While addressing a rally in Gujarat's Bharuch Lok Sabha constituency, the Union Home Minister urged the voters not to vote in favour of these "urban Naxals" in the ongoing elections. Shah even urged the people to vote for BJP's sitting MP Mansukh Vasava in Bharuch where AAP has fielded a candidate as part of its alliance with the Congress.

"You will never get a public representative like Manuskh Vasava. If you make a mistake, then some urban Naxal will take his place (as MP) and destroy this tribal region," Shah said. Mansukh Vasava faces AAP's sitting MLA Chaitar Vasava in Bharuch, which is part of south Gujarat that has a sizable presence of tribals.

"The Congress and AAP have come together to loot people. I have no hesitation in saying the Congress is an anti-tribal party and AAP will exploit tribals after getting their votes," Shah asserted.

The BJP veteran went on to claim that the Congress and AAP are spreading rumours that the BJP will change the Constitution and scrap reservations after it wins 400 Lok Sabha seats, adding the grand old party is an "expert" and the Arvind Kejriwal-led party a "Sardar" (chieftain) in spreading lies.

"These two liars have come together (as part of INDI alliance) in Bharuch," Shah said and pointed out that the Narendra Modi government has been in power for the past 10 years with a clear majority and could have changed the Constitution if it had any intention to do so.

Shah clarified by saying that PM Modi guarantees that he will neither touch reservations for Adivasis, Dalits or OBCs nor will he allow anyone to touch it.

The two parties have been claiming that the proposed Uniform Civil Code (UCC) will take away the fundamental rights of tribals, Shah further claimed.

"I have seen the UCC bill, and it says UCC does not apply to the tribals. They (Congress and AAP) are spreading lies. I would like to tell thousands of tribals sitting here that Chaitar Vasava (AAP candidate) and company are spreading lies. Do not fall for their words because Modi is a friend of Adivasis," the BJP stalwart said.

The Home Minister added that the Congress when it was in power for 10 years, allocated Rs 28,000 crore for tribal development. But since 2014, the Narendra Modi government has given Rs 1.33 lakh crore for the same cause.

"There used to be 90 Eklavya schools for tribal students under the Congress-led UPA government. Now, there are 740 of these schools. Also, a district mineral fund of Rs 75,000 crore has been set up to help tribals with their water, education, health, and nutrition needs," Shah added.

Shah strongly criticized the Congress for its stance on the Ram Temple issue, saying, "We invited Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi, and Mallikarjun Kharge for the idol consecration ceremony of the Ram Temple on January 22, but they were more concerned about their vote bank."

The BJP stalwart sought to ask the Bharuch voters whether they would support those who did not participate in the idol consecration of Lord Ram.