Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday dubbed the Congress party a "disciple" of Pakistan, and targeted Rahul Gandhi saying the neighbouring country was eager to make the 'shehzada' of the grand old party India's next prime minister as the country's enemies want a weak government to be at the helm.
Addressing a mega election rally in Anand town of central Gujarat in support of Bharatiya Janata Party's candidates for Anand and Kheda Lok Sabha seats, he also alleged that Congress wants to change India's Constitution to provide reservation of Scheduled Caste, Scheduled Tribe and Other Backward Classes (OBC) communities to Muslims.
Modi's comments linking Congress with Pakistan came a day after Chaudhry Fawad Hussain, a former minister in Imran Khan's cabinet in Pakistan, reportedly shared a video featuring Rahul Gandhi on his social media handle and praised him.
"Pakistan is crying because Congress is dying here. You all must have learnt that Pakistani leaders are now praying for Congress. Pakistan is eager to make 'shehzada' (referring to Rahul Gandhi) the next PM. This is not surprising because we already know that Congress is Pakistan's 'murid' (follower)" he said.
"The partnership between Pakistan and Congress has now been exposed completely. It shows that the country's enemies want a weak government in India, not a strong one...A weak government which was there at the time of 26/11 Mumbai terror attack. They want a corrupt government which was there before 2014. But Modi's strong government neither bows down nor does it stop," the PM added.
Unlike in the past when Congress was in power, the "tyres of Pakistan's terror have got punctured" now, he said.
"A country which used to export terror in the past, is now struggling to import 'atta' (flour). The hands which used to hold bombs are now holding 'bheekh ka katora' (begging bowl)," he said.
People across the world are now saying that India is a global bright spot. India is seen as 'vishwa bandhu' (global friend) who can resolve conflicts between two countries, Modi said.
On the issue of quota, he said, "Congress wants to give reservation to Muslims, the party's favourite vote bank. For that, they want to change the Constitution. I challenge Congress to give in writing that they will not change the Constitution to give reservation to Muslims on religious basis." The PM also challenged the Congress and the INDIA bloc to give in writing that it won't give reservation to Muslims "through backdoor by reducing OBC quota" in the states where the party and its allies are in power.
"I am challenging the shehzada to give this guarantee. There is no sense in taking the copy of the Constitution on the head and dancing. If you want to learn how to live for the Constitution and die for it, then come to Modi," the PM added.
Modi also took a dig at the grand old party over opposition leader Salman Khurshid's niece Maria Alam's call for 'vote jihad'.
Alam, a Samajwadi Party (SP) leader, called for a "vote jihad" in favour of the INDIA bloc candidate from Farrukhabad Lok Sabha seat of Uttar Pradesh.
"Now, the INDI alliance calls for vote jihad. This is new, because we have so far heard about 'love jihad' and 'land jihad'. This is said by a person who belonged to an educated Muslim family, not someone who studied in madrasa. I hope you all know what the meaning of jihad is and against whom the jihad is waged. This is an insult to democracy and not a single Congress leader has condemned it," he said.
PM Modi said such statements prove that intentions of the INDI alliance were "dangerous".
On the occasion, Modi remembered Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel and said the abrogation of Article 370 from Jammu and Kashmir was his biggest tribute to the country's first home minister.
Modi said in the last 10 years, his government provided tap water connections to 14 crore houses, while the Congress-led dispensations gave it to just 3 crore houses in 60 years of its rule.
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