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BJP President Amit Shah on Wednesday addressed three public rallies in poll-bound Haryana on the party’s campaign theme of nationalism, especially showcasing Defence Minister Rajnath Singh’s ritualistic prayer of the Rafale jets on Vijaydashmi while he underlined the ruling party’s tough stand on illegal migrants, NRC and Article 370.
Shah addressed rallies in Kaithal, Bhiwani and Rohtak and underlined the same theme, attacking the Congress for corruption and anti-Indian cultural value system. The Congress has criticised Defence Minister Rajnath Singh for linking nationalism with religion, citing Rajnath Singh’s performance of rituals before he did a sortie on Rafale jet fighter.
“Rajnath Singh ji performed shastra pooja in France but the Congress people felt very bad about this too… Should the shastra pujan tradition be observed or not? Should we keep this tradition alive or not? he asked the gathering. Referring to the row in Assam over the National Register of Citizens (NRC), he said, “For 70 years, these intruders have put a question mark on our security. The BJP government is committed to evicting all of them from country through the NRC. “Should these intruders be evicted or not?” Shah asked the gathering, accusing the Congress and its local candidate and senior leader Randeep Singh Surjewala of opposing the NRC implementation.
Shah wanted Congress leader Rahul Gandhi to make clear whether he is for or against Article 370 — recently nullified by the BJP government at the Centre. “The Congress has to oppose whatever the BJP does,” he said.
Shah said no previous government had dared to scrap Jammu and Kashmir’s special status, but the Narendra Modi government acted in the first session of Parliament after coming back to power.
“We expected to get the support of all parties in this because it was not the BJP’s job, but related to the country’s security,” he said.
He said there was a feeling among people in the country that Jammu and Kashmir was not fully integrated into the Indian Union, with Articles 370 and 35A acting as stumbling blocks.
He said several soldiers from Haryana had sacrificed their lives in Jammu and Kashmir.
Contrasting the BJP’s stand with that of the Congress, Shah said Atal Bihari Vajpayee had praised Indira Gandhi over the war against Pakistan that brought Bangladesh into being. He said this was because it was a matter of national interest and not a Congress victory.
Shah mentioned the Balakot air strike and the surgical strike earlier against terror camps across the LoC, saying the government has sent a strong message to Pakistan.
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