Prime Minister Narendra Modi, addressing a public rally in Delhi's Dwarka, launched a sharp critique of Congress's policies and highlighting the achievements of his government on Wednesday. Modi responded to Congress leader Rahul Gandhi's recent remarks, in which Gandhi mentioned the existence of a 'systematic bias' against lower castes since his family was in power.
"Sometimes while speaking lies, the truth comes out of the Shehzada's mouth. Today, Congress' Shehzada has confessed a big truth. He has admitted that the system that was formed during his grandmother, his father and his mother's time, was severely against the Dalits, backwards and Adivasis. This system of the Congress destroyed the generations of ST, SC, and OBCs. Today, the Shehzada admitted this himself," the Prime Minister said.
Gandhi, speaking in Haryana's Panchkula earlier in the day, had stated, "I have been sitting in the system since the day I was born. I understand the system from the inside. You cannot hide the system from me. How it works, whom it favours, how it favours, whom it protects, whom it attacks, I know everything because I come from inside the system".
"When my grandmother was the PM, my father was the PM, and when Manmohan Singh was the PM, I used to go to the PM's house. So I know how the system works from the inside. I can tell you one thing, the system is aligned against the lower castes, severely and on every level," he added.
READ | 'System Aligned Against Lower Castes, Know How It Works From Inside': Rahul Gandhi Says In Haryana
At the Dwarka rally, PM Modi also addressed the Sikh riots, accusing Congress and its allies of communal politics. "It is time that the country recognises these communal people...In Delhi, my Sikh brothers and sisters were burnt alive by putting ablaze tyres on their necks... Today, every party standing under Congress' umbrella is guilty of the Sikh massacre. PM Modi is giving justice to the victims of the Sikh riots. We made an SIT and we punished the accused Congress leaders. For the INDI Alliance, nothing is more important than their vote bank," he said.
Highlighting 'financial transparency' under his government, contrasting it with Congress's tenure, the Prime Minister said, "A PM of the Congress (Rajiv Gandhi) said that when 100 paise was sent from Delhi, but only 15 paise reached the bottom. Today, one rupee is released from Delhi, total of 100 paise reached the account for the beneficiary. In the last 10 years, we have transferred Rs. 36 lakh crores through DBT."
"If it had been the Congress government today, Rs. 31 lakh crore of it would have been looted by the middlemen... Who can forget the Common Wealth Games? Congress had the opportunity to display India's capabilities in front of the world. But they looted Delhi... And during the G20 Summit, the world praised India. This happened because of BJP's policy of 'Nation First'... Congress and INDI alliance's policy is 'Family First'," he added.
'Yeh Khan Market Gang Paap Ki Zimmedaar Hai': PM Modi On Calcutta HC Ruling
Modi also commented on the recent Calcutta High Court ruling that annulled all Other Backward Classes (OBC) certificates issued by West Bengal since 2010.
"Today, Calcutta HC has given a verdict that all the OBC certificates issued after 2010 have been cancelled. This was done because the West Bengal government inexplicably gave OBC certificates to Muslims, only for the Muslim vote bank. This vote bank politics, this politics of appeasement, is crossing every limit" the Prime Minister said.
"'Aaj Court ne tamacha maara hai, yeh Khan Market gang paap ki zimmedaar hai'...They say that Muslims have the first right on the country's resources. These people are continuously giving government lands to the Waqf Board and asking for votes in return. These people want to reserve 15% of the country's budget for minorities. They also want to give loans from banks and government tender based on religion. These people are opposing CAA to please their vote bank," the PM added.
The Calcutta High Court's decision came as a major judgement, with a division bench directing the preparation of a fresh OBC list based on the West Bengal Commission for Backward Classes Act of 1993.
Slamming Congress further, the PM said, "Congress constructed 12km highways every day, Modi government is constructing 30 km. Congress made 70 airports in 60 years, Modi made 70 new airports in 10 years. Congress made 380 medical colleges in 60 years, Modi made more than 325 new medical colleges in 10 years. There were 7 AIIMS during Congress rule, today there are more than 22 AIIMS. Only 25% of people had tap connections under Congress's rule, today more than 75% of homes have tap water connections".
"Today we are the biggest mobile phone exporter in the world... Today, there are around 1.25 lakh start-ups. We are doing defence production of more than one lakh crore... Today banks are making a profit of more than Rs. 3 lakh crores," PM Modi added.
READ | Calcutta HC Cancels All OBC Certificates Issued In West Bengal After 2010