BJP could not find winnable Muslim candidates: Kalraj
Union minister for micro, small and medium enterprises Kalraj Mishra said the BJP did not field Muslim candidates as it could not find those who had winnability factor.
Talking to HT, Mishra said the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) had fielded only those candidates who showed prospects of winning the election.
When asked why the BJP, which talks of ‘Sabka saath, sabka vikas’, did not give ticket to Muslims, Mishra said: “Winnability counts in distribution of tickets. There is no other reason behind the decision. In future, if we find a promising Muslim candidate, we will surely field him.”
“Modi wave swept Uttar Pradesh in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections. Likewise in Uttar Pradesh assembly election, demonetisation and development works carried out by the Modi government are helping the BJP in a big way,” he said.
Confident of getting the magic figure in UP assembly elections, Mishra claimed there was no anger among the people due to inconvenience caused to them due to note ban. “Demonetisation brought poor people closer to the BJP. Steps like SC/ST hub, demonetisation and promotion of start ups have helped the BJP win the support of the youth from all communities. Youths want development. They do not want to get into caste and religion. They want a government that can deliver on development front. People support Modi government as it introduced several development projects and launched welfare schemes for the poor, OBCs and Dalits,” Mishra said.
Asked about employment opportunities in rural areas, he said the Centre had introduced programmes to encourage start ups and skill development. “Schemes like ‘Make in India’ helped in employment generation. The schemes have started yielding desired results in terms of job creation,” he said.
Mishra claimed the undercurrent was in favour of the BJP and it would form the government in UP. Asked why so many union ministers are camping in Varanasi if the BJP is confident of an easy win, Mishra said they were deployed by the party to look after poll campaigning and inform the people about various initiatives taken by the central government.
Mishra also visited the public relations office of the Prime Minister in Ravindrapuri area in Varanasi.