Congress And ‘Ghamandia’ Allies Supported Women’s Reservation Bill Out Of Compulsion: PM Modi

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday said the Congress and its allies in the new “ghamandia” alliance supported the Women’s Reservation Bill in Parliament “reluctantly” as there was no way out and warned people that if given an opportunity, they will backtrack on it. Addressing a massive gathering of BJP workers ‘Karyakarta Mahakumb’ here in poll-bound Madhya Pradesh, the prime minister tore into Congress, equating the party with “rusted iron” and alleging that it was outsourced to “urban Naxals” and is not run by leaders. He said Congress would push Madhya Pradesh back into the BIMARU (laggard) category if given an opportunity again.

The mega meet was organised on the birth anniversary of Jana Sangh co-founder Deendayal Upadhyaya to mark the formal culmination of the BJP’s ‘Jan Ashirwad Yatras’ that crisscrossed the length and breadth of the state. “The Congress and its allies in the Ghamandia bloc supported the Women’s Reservation Bill out of compulsion and hesitation as they understood the power of nari shakti. Its passage became possible as ‘Modi hai to Mumkin hai’. Modi means the guarantee of fulfilling guarantees,” the PM said. He slammed Congress and its allies for not allowing the passage of this bill when they were in power. If given an opportunity, Congress will back out on this bill that seeks to provide 33 per cent reservation to women in Parliament and state legislatures, he said. Modi said the Congress has lost the will power and its workers on the ground have become silent.

“First, the Congress was ruined (electorally) and then it turned bankrupt. The Congress has been now leased out on a contract. They are coining its policies and slogans. It is not being run by leaders,” the PM said. He said Congress has been outsourced and “urban Naxals have got the contract”. “They are holding sway in Congress which is being felt by that party’s workers on the ground. The Congress is becoming redundant on the ground,” he added. Modi said he wanted to caution women of Madhya Pradesh as the “ghamandia” (INDIA) alliance has reluctantly supported the women’s quota bill. “Its allies hampered the passage of the bill for the last 30 years. Now they raise their hand out of compulsion as the women are awakened. They ran the government for decades with a majority but why they did not push the bill through?” Modi asked. He said women should remain alert against the efforts to divide them and added the opposition will try to find chinks in this bill. Modi also targeted Rahul Gandhi without taking his name, saying for Congress leaders born with a silver spoon, “the life of poor people is like an adventure tourism and picnic and the poor person’s agri field is a place for video shooting and photo session”. He said first-time voters in MP are fortunate that they have seen only the BJP rule in the state, which is the important centre of India’s development vision. For a developed India, MP too needs to be developed, he added. Modi said Congress wanted people to remain poor in its own interest.

“During its erstwhile rule, Congress had pushed MP, which has rich resources, into a BIMARU (laggard) state whereas more than 13.5 crore people came out of poverty under the BJP rule in the last five years in the country,” the prime minister said. The Congress had turned MP into a BIMARU state during its long rule after Independence. It will make MP BIMARU again if it gets an opportunity, Modi added. He also slammed Congress for criticising the BJP over the construction of the new Parliament building, quality roads and modern stations. “Congress spreads negativity. They don’t like the achievements of the nation. They want to take the country back to the 20th Century,” Modi said, adding the Congress destroyed the states ruled by it with crores of corruption. He said the Congress had opposed the digital payment system but the world is impressed by the UPI mode. After Modi reached the stage at the venue, a group of BJP’s women wing members honoured him with a huge garland for the passage of the Women Reservation Bill.