EC warns but Nadda repeats ‘Muslim’ quota to pin Cong

BJP’s Birbhum candidate Dhar’s papers cancelled

Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) national president JP Nadda on Friday charged the Congress and the INDIA Bloc of opposition parties with harbouring a “secret agenda” of snatching the rights of the backward classes, Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes and handing them over to a particular community whereas Prime Minister Narendra Modi believes that the first right on the country’s resources is of the poor.

Nadda’s raised the issue a day after the Election Commission sent a notice to him on complaints against Prime Minister Narendra Modi by three political parties for violation of poll code in his speech at Banswara in Rajasthan on April 21 in which he said that “they (Congress) would collect and distribute the assets among those who have more children and distribute among the infiltrators”.

Recalling a 2006 statement of then PM Manmohan Singh, Modi had also said that earlier when its government was there, it had said, “Desh ki sampatti par pehla adhikar Musalmano ka hai” (the first right on country’s assets is of the Muslims).

The Congress had complained to the EC about Modi’s remarks terming them “divisive” and directed at a “particular religious community”. The Communist Party of India (MarxistLeninist) Liberation and the CPI had also filed complaints with the Commission in this regard. The poll panel had written to Nadda that with regards to MCC violations by the star campaigners, it had taken the view that while these “star campaigners” would remain responsible for speeches made, the panel would address the party president or head on a “case-tocase basis” in such complaints. It therefore asked him to submit his reply to the notice by April 29.

However, in his video statement ON Friday, Nadda almost used the same tone as that of the PM while speaking on the subject. Attacking the Congress for “preparing the ground for allowing reservation to Muslims for a long time”, Nadda said through the Sachar Committee Report too an attempt was made to create an impression that the conditions of the Muslims was worse than that of the Dalits.

He said the BJP does not want Muslims to be ostracised in the country but there is a need for protection of the rights of SCs, STs and OBCs and so it opposes attempts at “appeasement” by those who want to snatch the rights of these underprivileged groups.

The BJP president also pointed out that the Congress tried to provide reservation to Muslims in some states. One such state is Karnataka, he said, adding that the BJP government there had ended the quota but it was restored by the Siddaramaiah government.

The District Election office on Friday cancelled the nomination of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) candidate of Birbhum, former IPS officer Debasish Dhar, after he failed to submit the ‘No Due certificate’.

Following the incident, BJP fielded party’s senior leader Debtanu Bhattacharya, the new Birbhum Lok Sabha constituency candidate.

After the nomination was cancelled, Debasish Dhar said he would move the court.

“The reasons which were cited for cancellation of my nomination are baseless. After consulting with my party leaders, I will move the Calcutta High Court over the issue,” said Dhar.

Debtanu Bhattacharya said that he will fight ‘unitedly’ with his party to beat the Trinamool Congress (TMC).

Dhar was in charge of Cooch Behar district when, during the 2021 state Assembly election, four people had died in open firing by Central forces.