On Wednesday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said that the Congress seeks to grant reservations based on religion. He then asked the party and the members of the INDIA coalition to provide a written pledge that they will never do so.
Speaking at a rally in Deesa town, Banaskantha district, ahead of the Gujarat Lok Sabha elections, Prime Minister Modi stated that economically disadvantaged groups would be protected and that reservations in jobs and education would be granted to SCs, STs, and OBCs as long as he and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) were in power.
“I challenge the ‘shehzada’ (prince) of the Congress (referring to Rahul Gandhi), as well as his party and its supporters to announce they will never misuse reservation in the name of religion, nor will they play with the Constitution or grant reservation in the name of religion,” emphasised the BJP stalwart.
“The Congress should give in writing that they would not give reservation based on religion,” PM Modi said.
The prime minister declared that he would not permit anyone to “play the game of reservation” while he is alive.
“The Congress and its people should listen carefully that this is Modi. As long as Modi is alive, I will not let you play the game of reservation in the name of the Constitution,” he said.
The third phase of the Lok Sabha elections will take place on May 7 in Gujarat, the home state of Prime Minister Modi.
