LUCKNOW: Addressing a public rally in Moradabad, the brass city, which he visited twice in a span of 10 days, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, while addressing a gathering, launched a broadside on Congress over the Kashmir issue, accusing the grand old party of ‘pampering’ Article 370 like a child in its lap for seven decades until it was scrapped in 2019.
“For 70 years, the Congress pampered Article 370 like an illegitimate child in its lap,” Shah said, referring to the special status enjoyed by Jammu and Kashmir under the provision.
In the same vein, he flayed AICC chief Mallikarjun Kharge for questioning the reference to Kashmir given by PM Modi in his rallies in other states. “Is Kashmir not ours? Khargeji asks what Rajasthan and UP have to do with Kashmir. I must remind him that every child of Moradabad is ready to sacrifice his life for Kashmir,” said Shah.
Modi became PM in 2014 and 2019 because of Uttar Pradesh, he said. “UP gave 73 seats in 2014 and 65 seats in 2019 to see Modiji as PM with a full majority. We have to make him PM for the third time by winning all 80 seats in UP. This time, 73 and 65 will not work. We have to ensure a win on all 80,” said the Home Minister.
Appealing to the voters of western UP to exercise their right judiciously, Shah referred to a common saying that the future of a baby is reflected by his/her actions in the cradle. He said similarly, western UP used to set the trend for success in the rest of UP by voting in phase-I.
Rejecting the Opposition’s narrative around caste census and its mention in their manifestos, Shah said, “Modiji has divided the country into four castes — women, poor, youth, and farmers. Work has been done on this basis.”
Western UP
Shah referred to a common saying that the future of a baby is reflected by his or her actions in the cradle. Similarly, he said, western UP used to set the trend for success in the rest of UP by voting in phase-I.