PM Modi slams Congress for delaying Bharat Ratna for Ambedkar in Hyderabad

The MRPS has been fighting for the categorization of SCs for the past three decades on the grounds that the fruits of reservations, among others, have not reached them. The BJP has supported them in every struggle since the last three decades, Modi said.

Hyderabad: Prime Minister Modi also lashed out at the Congress, saying twice that it did not allow BR Ambedkar to win elections and alleged that the grand old party did not allow Ambedkar’s portrait to be installed in the old Parliament building for decades. Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday also said that the Center would soon form a committee that would adopt all possible means to empower Madigas (an SC community) regarding their demand for categorization of Scheduled Castes.

PM Modi praises Madiga reservation Porata Samithi

He was speaking at a meeting organized here by the Madiga Reserve Porata Samithi (MRPS), a community organization of Madigas, one of the largest Scheduled Caste voters in the Telugu states of Telangana and Andhra Pradesh.

The MRPS has been fighting for the categorization of SCs for the past three decades on the grounds that the fruits of reservations, among others, have not reached them. The BJP has supported them in every struggle since the last three decades, Modi said.

“We are determined to put an end to this injustice as quickly as possible. It is our promise that we will soon form a committee that will use every possible means to empower you. You and we also know that a major legal process is underway in the Supreme Court. We consider your struggle as just,” he said.

“We will ensure justice. It is the Indian government’s top priority to ensure that you get justice in court. With full force, the Government of India as your colleague will stand for justice,” he said.

During the meeting, Manda Krishna Madiga, founder of MRPS, became emotional as he sat next to Modi. Modi patted Madiga on the shoulder and hugged him. He also described Madiga as his younger brother. Terming Madiga as his leader in the agitation and himself as his ‘assistant’, the Prime Minister assured that he would support the community in their struggle for justice. The Prime Minister said political parties and leaders have made promises to Madigas and betrayed them in the past.

“I apologize for their sins,” Modi said.

Prime Minister Modi recalls working with BJP President Bangaru Lakshman

Modi also recalled that he worked under late BJP president Bangaru Lakshman, who belonged to the SC and hailed from Telangana. The Prime Minister asserted that only the BJP can ensure social justice to the Telangana people and take the state on the golden path of progress. Meanwhile, Modi slammed Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar for his comments on former CM Jitan Ram Manjhi.

The Prime Minister said that the Bihar CM insulted Manjhi on the floor of the assembly and called it shameful. An attempt was made to say that Manjhi did not deserve to hold the post of Chief Minister, he alleged. He also alleged that Bihar Chief Minister (Nitish Kumar) had insulted his friend and late Dalit leader Ram Vilas Paswan.

Modi also lashed out at the Congress, saying twice that it did not allow BR Ambedkar to win elections and alleged that the grand old party did not allow Ambedkar’s portrait to be installed in the old Parliament building for decades.

He alleged that it was due to the grand old party that the architect of the Constitution, BR Ambedkar, was not given the Bharat Ratna for decades and that this was possible only after the formation of the BJP-backed government at the Center .

“The Congress did not allow Babasaheb Ambedkar to win twice,” said Prime Minister Modi

“This Congress twice did not allow Babasaheb Ambedkar to win. For decades, the Congress prevented Babasaheb’s portrait from being hung in the old Parliament. The Central Hall Babasaheb was not given the Bharat Ratna for decades because of the Congress,” he alleged.

Taking a dig at the BRS government in Telangana, the Prime Minister said during the state agitation that the party had promised to appoint a Dalit as the first Chief Minister of Telangana. But after the formation of the state, Prime Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao encroached on the CM’s seat after crushing the aspirations of every Dalit. “BRS is anti-Dalit and Congress is nothing less than that,” he said.

The BRS promised to provide land to Dalits. The Prime Minister asked whether it had fulfilled its promise. The BRS also promised to provide thousands of crores of rupees under the ‘Dalit Bandhu’ (financial assistance to Dalits to start business) scheme. Did you benefit from it, he asked. The court should also say that the beneficiaries of the ‘Dalit Bandhu’ scheme should be selected in an impartial manner, he said.

The BRS government has committed ‘irrigation fraud’ in lieu of irrigation schemes, Modi alleged. He further alleged that the BRS government in connivance with the Delhi AAP had committed ‘liquor fraud’ worth thousands of crores of rupees.

“These people are contributing to the corruption and not working,” he said. Prime Minister Modi also described the AAP as a staunch ally of Congress in Delhi and that BRS was dramatizing the fight against Congress in Telangana.

(With input from agencies)