Prime Minister Narendra Modi has criticised the Trinamool Congress (TMC) government in West Bengal following a recent verdict from the Calcutta High Court.
The court cancelled all Other Backward Classes (OBC) certificates issued in the state after 2010. Modi made these comments during a poll rally in Dwarka, Delhi, accusing the TMC of engaging in vote bank politics.
At the rally, Modi claimed that the TMC, which has been in power since 2011, issued OBC certificates to Muslims solely to secure their votes. He criticised this move as an example of appeasement politics, stating that it was a clear attempt to manipulate the voting population for political gain.
Modi expressed his strong disapproval of the practice, stating that the court's decision was a direct rebuke to the TMC's actions. He referred to the verdict as a "slap in the face" of those responsible for such policies, emphasising that the TMC's approach was crossing every limit of ethical governance.
In his speech, Modi also accused the opposition of unfairly allocating government lands to the Waqf Board in exchange for votes. He claimed that the opposition wanted to reserve 15% of the national budget for minorities and provide loans and government tenders based on religious affiliations. According to Modi, these actions were designed to cater to a specific vote bank rather than serving the broader interests of the country.
Furthermore, Modi criticised Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, referring to him as "Shehzada" (prince) and accusing him of inadvertently revealing the truth about the Congress party's historical stance towards marginalised communities.
Modi asserted that Gandhi's comments were an admission of the systemic discrimination against Dalits, backward classes, and Adivasis during the tenures of his grandmother, father, and mother, who all served as Prime Ministers of India.
Modi claimed that the Congress party's policies had severely impacted these communities, destroying generations of Scheduled Tribes (ST), Scheduled Castes (SC), and OBCs. He highlighted that Gandhi's remarks inadvertently confirmed the Congress party's failure to support these communities adequately.
Modi delivered a biting indictment of the Congress party and the TMC during his remarks at the Dwarka rally. He charged them of playing politics of appeasement, vote-bank tactics, and neglecting the concerns of marginalised populations.
In order to garner support, Modi focused his speech on his government's commitment to moral leadership and fair development.
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