Amit Shah Mentions Bofors Deal after Cong's 'Shastra Puja' Jibe, Says Party Has Problems With Traditions

Kaithal (Har): Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Wednesday attacked the Congress for its stand on Article 370 and also took on the party over criticism of the 'shastra puja' performed on the first Rafale aircraft acquired by the country.

"Congress leader Rahul Gandhi opposed scrapping of Article 370. I want to ask Rahul to make it clear whether he is in favour or against the scrapping of Article 370," the BJP president said at a poll rally here, referring to the abrogation of the special status for Jammu and Kashmir. "The Congress has to oppose whatever BJP does."

In an apparent reference to comments by some Congress leaders on the 'shastra puja' performed by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, he said Congress people felt bad about this too.

Singh took delivery of the multi-role combat aircraft in France on Tuesday after performing a traditional Dussehra worship of arms. "Yesterday was Vijayadashami, marking the victory of good over evil... I want to congratulate the prime minister and the defence minister on Rafale," said Shah.

Shah once again invoked the National Register of Citizens (NRC) exercise and said that every illegal migrant in the country will be sent home before the next parliamentary elections.

When we come again to seek your votes in 2024, I want to say before then we would have evicted every single intruder from this country, the BJP president said in Kaithal, addressing the first of his three public meetings of the day in Haryana where elections to the state assembly will be held on October 21.

Referring to the row in Assam over the NRC, Shah said that 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, he added.

“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.

Ask the Congress people why they opposed the Triple Talaq Bill, and scrapping of Articles 370 and 35A. “Why are they opposing the NRC?” he asked.

He attacked former prime minister Manmohan Singh, accusing him of reading out whatever was given to him by "madam" (Congress president Sonia Gandhi).

Senior Congress leader Randeep Singh Surjewala is seeking re-election from Kaithal. The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party is seeking a second term in the state and has set itself a target of winning over 75 seats in the 90-member assembly.

(With inputs from PTI)