Lok Sabha polls: PM Modi's remark on 'those who have more children' sparks opposition fury

The opposition came down hard on Prime Minister Narendra Modi after he claimed that the Congress, if elected, would distribute the country's wealth to “those who have the most children”.

Addressing a rally in Rajasthan's Banswara on Sunday, PM Modi slammed the Congress for its promise of probe into wealth redistribution and said the party, if voted to power, would distribute wealth of the country to the “infiltrators” and “those who have more children”. .

The Congress hit back and accused PM Modi of lying and creating a divide between Hindus and Muslims. The party rejected the prime minister's claims and said his program contained no such promises.

Reacting to the Prime Minister's remarks, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi said the Prime Minister was trying to divert people's attention from various issues.

“After the disappointment of the first phase of voting, the level of lies from Narendra Modi has fallen so much that out of fear, he now wants to divert public attention from the issues,” he tweeted on Sunday.

“Trends have begun to emerge regarding the overwhelming support Congress's 'revolutionary manifesto' is receiving. The country will now vote on its issues, vote for its jobs, its families and its future,” he said.

Senior Congress leader Jairam Ramesh accused Prime Minister Modi of using “venomous language” and questioned why the census, last conducted in 2011, was not conducted in 2021.

“The Prime Minister talks about the world in venomous language. He should also answer a simple question: a census has been conducted every ten years since 1951. This brings out the real data of the Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe population. He would have due was carried out in 2021 but has not been carried out to date,” he tweeted on Monday.

“Why is the Prime Minister remaining silent on this? This is a conspiracy to destroy Babasaheb Ambedkar's Constitution,” he said.

AIMIM leader Asaduddin Owaisi accused Prime Minister Modi of “abusing” Muslims to get votes and that the community was feared “while their wealth was used to enrich others”.

“Prime Minister Modi today (Sunday) called Muslims infiltrators and people with many children. Since 2002 till date, the only 'Modi guarantee' has been to abuse Muslims and “getting votes. If we talk about the country's wealth, you should know that Under Modi's rule, the first right to India's wealth was given to his rich friends,” Owaisi tweeted on Sunday.

“1 percent of Indians own 40 percent of the country's wealth. Ordinary Hindus are made to fear Muslims while their wealth is used to enrich others,” he said.

Former Congress leader and Rajya Sabha MP Kapil Sibal reacted to PM Modi's remark and said he expected “nothing better” from him. “But I feel sad for my country,” he said Monday.

Later, at a press conference, Sibal questioned why the Election Commission had not taken action against Prime Minister Modi following his remark.

“I would like to ask the Election Commission why did you not take any action? You should have criticized and sent a notice asking not to repeat the statement, and taken action under Section 153A of the Penal Code. This is also not good for the country or the Election Commission,” he said.

In a scathing attack on the Prime Minister, Sibal said, “PM Modi gave a speech yesterday. It was evident that the first phase of elections was not going in his favor. People would be disappointed with it. He was calling the minorities from a foreigner. What kind of policy is this?

“On one hand you are talking about Ram Mandir and Ram's conduct, and on the other hand you are spreading hatred. Where are Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas and Sabka Vishwas? You cannot keep India intact from this way,” he added.

On the other hand, BJP general secretary (organization) BL Santhosh claimed that the opposition was “shaken” by Prime Minister Modi's speech in Banswara.

“With a single speech, Prime Minister @narendramodi shook the opposition. The release of Urban Naxal's 'wealth redistribution' agenda was backed down twice as quickly as it was launched. Now go explain to voters what @INCIndia and the INDIA bloc mean 'redistribution' of wealth,' he wrote on X.

At the rally in Banswara, Prime Minister Modi cited former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's remarks that Muslims had the first claim to the country's resources.

“The Congress manifesto says that they will calculate the gold with mothers and sisters, get information about it and then distribute these assets. They will distribute it to whom? The Manmohan Singh government had declared that Muslims have the first right to the country's assets,” the Prime Minister said. » said Modi.

“That means to whom this property will be distributed? It will be distributed among those who have more children. It will be distributed to the infiltrators. Should your hard-earned money go to the infiltrators? Do you approve of this?” he said.

(with contributions from PTI)