PM: PEOPLE READY FOR REFORMS

Blames Congress of sowing seeds of casteism Repeats claims of conspiracies being hatched against BJP

Prime Minister Narendra Modi accused the Congress of trying to sow the seeds of casteism in Gujarat in its “hunger for power”, asserting that the BJP’s win had underlined the people’s acceptance of his government’s reforms.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday accused the Congress of trying to sow the seeds of casteism in Gujarat in its “hunger for power”, asserting that the BJP’s win in the Assembly elections had underlined the people’s acceptance of his government’s reforms.

Addressing BJP workers at the party headquarters here, he was unsparing in his attack on the Congress and critics who, he said, could not accept his party’s victory in Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh.

He also returned to his plank of development and pitched for social harmony in his home state, which had seen several caste agitations in the run up to the Assembly polls, saying that the people should forget the past and embrace each other.

With the BJP — which recorded its sixth straight victory in Assembly elections in Gujarat — drawing its lowest tally this year, Mr Modi said the victory this time was not samanya (normal) but asamanya (special).

There was a time when retaining power was considered a major achievement in the country, he said. But the BJP has been winning in Gujarat since 1989 on its plank of development, he added, describing it as unprecedented.

Mr Modi, who was the Chief Minister of Gujarat from 2001 before he became the Prime Minister in May, 2014, said attempts were made to “demoralise” the state BJP leadership after he moved to the Centre.

Referring to the just-concluded Gujarat poll, he said the state government was attacked from all sides and there was a “storm of disinformation”.

“The Congress might be visible on the ground but there were many forces at work beside it. ‘Bring down the BJP once’. All sorts of conspiracies were hatched,” Mr Modi said.

There could be anger over the issue of development but some were making fun of it, he said, apparently targeting the Congress and Patidar leader Hardik Patel, who had run a campaign with the meme “development has gone mad” against the BJP.

The state was rife with the “poison of casteism” until 30 years ago, he said, referring to Congress rule in Gujarat, and added that BJP governments and leaders worked to remove it.

“In their hunger for power, some people tried to sow the seeds of casteism in the last few months for the elections. The people rejected it,” he said.

Taking on his critics over claims that glitches in GST execution would harm the BJP in Gujarat, he said his party was projected to lose the UP local polls because of the tax reform and the “same rumours” were spread even this time around.

He said he would urge intellectuals who assessed the mood of the people not to mislead them, saying that it would not benefit the masses but harm the country.