‘We have one year left. The perception of young Dalits can be changed’
OUTREACH Minister says Modi government’s record on SCS, STS is good but people occupying higher positions in the government will have to ensure better publicity
NEWDELHI: Union minister for consumer affairs and food & public distribution, Ram Vilas Paswan is among the seniormost Dalit leaders in the country. The chief of the Lok Janshakti Party (LJP), he was first elected to the Lok Sabha in 1977. He spoke to and
about the recent Dalit unrest, the political situation in Bihar, and the 2019 elections. Edited excerpts:
Kumar Uttam Prashant Jha
90% of them would be SCS. Take Jan Dhan — the majority of the beneficiaries would be SCS. Because all these schemes are universal, it may not be apparent. But remember when you make scheme for poor, SCS and STS benefit the most. The social justice minister, Thaawarchand Gehlot, said it many times. But you are right, when PM says, it sends one signal; when Amit Shah says it, a certain signal goes. lessons from Modi. In four years, Modi has not spoken about Article 370 or Ram Temple or Uniform Civil Code. He did not stoke any controversy. He simply said Constitution is my religion. Everyone should follow this.
I am very worried. But I have a question if you blame BJP for this: Nitish (Kumar) was the chief minister for 10 years with them. Why was there no incident then?
No, the BJP is not aggressive. But the rivals have become aggressive. The RJD (Rashtriya Janata Dal) has become more aggressive. The BJP is being made a scapegoat. You must understand all non-congress people in Bihar are from the JP (Jayaprakash Narayan) movement, they can never be communal — be it Sushil Modi or Nand Kishor Yadav or Shahnawaz Hussain. We have all been in jail and worked with JP (Jayaprakash Narayan).
I was, am, and will be with NDA. Anything else is unthinkable. NDA is intact. There will be Rahul (Gandhi) on the other side. And there will be Third Front or Mamata (Banerjee). Now think about where will people go?
Where is the unity?
Nothing will happen. There is only one formulation in democracy — who is the leader? That’s it. On that, nobody will agree.
Congress will not accept anyone other than Rahul Gandhi. Take it from me. These people became zero from hero doing all these things. There were three elections between 1996 and 1999. Does the country want that?