Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday accused the Congress of seeking votes in the name of caste and divisive tactics. Modi was addressing a rally in Lunavada town of Mahisagar in north Gujarat on a day when 89 constituencies of the state went to polls.
“The Bharatiya Janata Party is asking for votes in these elections on our development agenda,” Modi said. “Sadly, the Congress is asking for votes in the name of caste politics and divisive tactics.”
The prime minister then criticised the party over an alleged derogatory tweet made by youth Congress leader, Salman Nizami. “He wrote on Twitter about Rahul Gandhi’s father and grandmother. But then he asks ‘Modi, tell me who is your Mother, who is your father’... Such language can’t even be used for enemies,” Modi said.
Modi further alleged that Nizami had called Army personnel rapists. “How can we accept such people like Salman Nizami? He also says there will be an Afzal [Guru] from every home.”
However, the Congress said there was no member by that name in their party. “We don’t know who Salman Nizami is,” senior Congress Rajiv Shukla told reporters at a press conference. “He does not hold any position in the party.”
On Saturday afternoon, Modi addressed a rally in Bodeli. He will address campaign rallies in Mehsana and Anand later in the day, while BJP President Amit Shah will address two public gatherings in Dahod and Kheda district. Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi will address a public meeting in Modi’s hometown, Vadnagar.
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