 Agencies
New Delhi, Dec 22: Amid widespread protests against the amended Citizenship Act, that has resulted in 22 deaths across Uttar Pradesh, Assam and Karnataka, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday said his government's schemes had never discriminated on the basis of religion while assuring the people that the Citizenship law and proposed National Register of Citizens (NRC) had nothing to do with Muslims.
In one of his longest speeches that spanned over an hour at Delhi's Ramlila Maidan, barely a km away from Old Delhi's Daryaganj area that was hit by violence two days ago, PM Modi accused the Opposition of stoking fears and misleading people over the amended Citizenship law. Here are the highlights
"Few Opposition parties are spreading all kinds of rumours, misleading people and stoking their emotions against Citizenship law. I only have one request to them: hate Modi, but don't hate India. Target me but don't set public property on fire," Modi said.
"Lie is being spread that I brought law to snatch people's rights, it will not stand. We have never asked anyone if he goes to temple or mosque when it comes to implementing our schemes," PM Modi further said.
PM Modi also clarified that no Indian citizen would be affected by the new law, which grants citizenship to individuals who are Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, Christian, Jain, or Parsi who entered India from Pakistan, Bangladesh, or Afghanistan by the cut-off date of December 31, 2014.
Thousands of BJP supporters attended PM Modi's rally at Ramlila Grounds in New Delhi. (Express photo by Prem Nath Pandey)
"Lie is being spread that I brought law to snatch people's rights, it will not stand. We have never asked anyone if he goes to temple or mosque when it comes to implementing our schemes," PM Modi further said.
"CAA is not for any citizen of this country. Congress and its allies, living in cities, urban Naxals are spreading rumours. They are spreading lies about detention centres. CAA and NRC have nothing to do with Indians Muslims" the PM said.
Calling out his critics, PM Modi said, "Dalits, who came here from Pakistan, are among the beneficiaries of the Citizenship law. Why you can't see their pain."
Nearly a week since the December 15 police crackdown on Delhi's Jamia Millia Islamia, when forces had entered the university, clashed with students, and lobbed tear gas shells in the library, leaving many of the students injured, protests have fanned out across the country over the Citizenship law. In the past three days, protests have turned violent in Uttar Pradesh, where the total number of deaths has reached 15, including an eight-year-old boy.
PM Modi hits out at AAP over unauthorised colonies
At the same time, virtually launching BJP's Delhi election campaign, scheduled early next year, Prime Minister Narendra Modi attacked the Arvind Kejriwal-led AAP government in Delhi for not doing enough for unauthorised colonies.
At the rally, which was held to thank the PM for giving ownership rights to 40 lakh residents of 1731 unauthorised colonies, Modi accused the AAP government of giving over 2,000 bungalows in posh Delhi locations to "VIPs close to the party in an illegal manner".
"We have never questioned or discriminated people based on their religion. Hindus, Muslims, Sikhs, Christians all were benefitted by the unauthorised colonies Bill, everyone who lives here was benefitted. Why did we do this? Because we live for the love of the country," PM Modi said.
Giving legal status to unauthorised colonies in the capital is one of the major poll planks of the BJP in the upcoming assembly polls, which are scheduled early next year.
The Prime Minister also targetted AAP, which won 67 out of the 70 seats in the last Assembly elections, over issues like hindering Metro work and availability of drinking water. |
