Nana Patole
| Photo Credit: EMMANUAL YOGINI

Caste-based hierarchy is ingrained in BJP’s ideology, Maharashtra Congress president Nana Patole said on Friday. Mr. Patole’s statement is a response to the remarks of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) on the first day of campaigning for the State Assembly election.

“The BJP has committed the sin of inciting tensions between castes, and Prime Minister Modi should not blame Congress for this. In the sacred land of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, the people of Maharashtra will not tolerate Modi and Shah’s attempts to create political divides based on caste and religion,” Mr. Patole said here.

Criticising the BJP for mocking Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, Mr. Patole said while Mr. Gandhi fought to protect democracy and the Constitution, mocking him was an insult to the Constitution.

‘BJP labels those defending democracy as Naxalites’

“The BJP has consistently disrespected Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar and the Constitution. It is the BJP that has labelled those defending democracy and the Constitution as Naxalites,” he said.

Responding to Mr. Modi’s accusation that the Congress divided castes within the Other Backward Castes (OBCs) and did not give them reservation, Mr. Patole said, “It was the BJP who fiercely opposed the Mandal Commission that recommended reservations to OBCs. The public is aware that it was the BJP that removed political reservations for OBCs. In Maharashtra, the BJP has sown discord among Marathas, OBCs, Dhangars, Adivasis, and Halbas under the pretext of reservation.”

He further accused the BJP of doing away with reservations in jobs by selling off public companies. “Without conducting UPSC exams, the Modi government has appointed RSS-affiliated youths directly to Joint Secretary positions, depriving SC, ST, and OBC communities of their reservation benefits. Just two days ago, a BJP leader in Wani in Yavatmal made extremely offensive remarks about the Kunbi community, in in the presence of many BJP leaders with no one intervening. Mr. Modi’s expressed sympathy for the OBC community is nothing more than fake affection,” Mr. Patole said.

‘BJP split Sena and NCP, using them as crutches’

With slogans such as ‘Batenge toKatenge’, the BJP aims at inciting religious conflicts in Maharashtra, the Congress leader said. “Considering the BJP’s stance on Dalits, Adivasis, and minorities, one wonders if BJP even considers these communities as citizens of the country. Modi’s accusation that Congress no longer stands as a national party and relies on support from other parties in each state is childish and ridiculous. Modi’s government itself relies on support from Chandrababu Naidu and Nitish Kumar. To form a government in Maharashtra, they split Balasaheb Thackeray’s Shiv Sena and Sharad Pawar’s NCP and relied on them as crutches to form the government—does the Prime Minister not know this? Modi, who claims Congress is finished, mentions the Congress 50-60 times in each of his rallies. His speech was the usual attempt to mislead by telling lies but the people of Maharashtra will not fall for this deception,” Mr. Patole said.