On Tuesday (28th May), Union Home Minister Amit Shah slammed Arvind Kejriwal who is out on conditional interim bail and has to surrender on 2nd June. Home Minister Shah stated that the AAP Supremo Kejriwal should reflect on why he is going to jail. He added that Kejriwal must declare his successor after he goes to jail.
In an exclusive interview with TV9 Bharatvarsh, Shah also slammed Rahul Gandhi over his misleading claims on Agniveer scheme stating that the Congress leader has a problem, he can’t read more than half a page.
Amit Shah expressed confidence regarding the BJP forming the government and stated that Modi ji is going to become the Prime Minister for the third time. He said that the BJP-led NDA has crossed 310 seats by the fifth phase and at the end of the seventh phase, the NDA would certainly cross 400 seats. Regarding the target of 400 seats, he stressed the need for a stable government adding that India had unstable coalition governments for over 30 years and referred to it as a nightmare for the country as the nation lagged in development in that period.
The Union Home Minister dismissed the opposition’s allegation that the BJP is seeking 400 seats for the alliance as it wants to crush the opposition parties and reminded them that Indira Gandhi jailed 1,30,000 political workers but it didn’t crush any party.
Responding to Rahul Gandhi’s allegations that the BJP wants to finish the Congress, Shah said, “At one point in time, even the Congress had 400 seats. But the BJP was not finished. The BJP does not believe in finishing off anyone. We want to grow but this does not mean that we want to finish off anyone.” He noted that parties end only because leaders break their promises and indulge in corruption.
Slamming Kejriwal, the Home Minister said, “But you committed corruption, you broke all the promises. Kejriwal formed the party by fighting against corruption. At first, he used to say that he will not enter politics, but then he said he will fight against corruption. Today, he is contesting elections alongside Congress. It is the same Congress against whose whom he spearheaded a campaign against corruption and fought and then came to power. It (parties) doesn’t end with allegations, it ends with breaking your promise.”
Regarding Delhi, Shah emphasised, “Mark my words, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) will win all the seven seats of Delhi. This even after both the parties joined hands.”
Responding to Kejriwal’s charges that Swati Maliwal is in cahoots with the BJP, Shah said that the AAP leader’s election is over and he should raise some other issue.
In a scathing attack on the I.N.D.I. alliance, the senior BJP leader said that the alliance was formed not on the basis of principles but rather based on self-interest and selfish motives.
He said, “Look at the status of this alliance, West Bengal CM Mamata (Banerjee) ji is neither with Congress nor with the communists. All three are part of the I.N.D.I.A. bloc. Kejriwal in Gujarat, Haryana, Delhi is with Congress, and against Congress in Punjab. Congress and Communists are against each other in Kerala and are part of the alliance. I am unable to understand how and why this alliance exists.”
Lambasting AAP, the Home Minister stressed that corruption increased manifold in Punjab after the arrival of the Aam Aadmi Party. He said, “Whenever the Chief Minister of Delhi goes somewhere, he goes with the CM of Punjab. There is a perception among the people of Punjab that Arvind Kejriwal considers Punjab CM his pilot and travel agent.”
He slammed the opposition parties for raising questions on EVM and asserted why they don’t mention EVMs when they win. He said that when the opposition is losing, they start shouting about EVMs in advance.
Taking a jibe at Rahul Gandhi’s ‘Khata Khat, Sata Sat’ remark, he said, “Congress had promised to give an allowance of Rs 1500 to women in Himachal. There was a promise to buy milk at Rs 100 per liter, but not a single work was completed. In Telangana also, all tall claims of Khatta Khat.. fall flat.”
In reply to Rahul Gandhi’s announcement on Agniveer that he will cancel it, Amit Shah said that his problem is that he cannot read more than half a page. The arrangement in Agniveer is that out of the 100 soldiers, 25 will be made permanent, and the rest will be given relaxation and other benefits in governments, police forces, etc.
The Home Minister asserted that after the elections, both Akhilesh Yadav and Rahul Gandhi will go abroad. He said, “I have heard this, whenever it is hot here, these people do the same.”
He reiterated the saffron party’s commitment of not allowing reservations on religious ground and categorically rejected opposition’s allegation that they will change constitution if they win more than 400 seats.
He reiterated that Pok is an integral part of India adding that PoK should be the agenda of every government of India. Slamming Kashmir’s politicians, Shah said, “Whenever terrorism increased in Kashmir, Abdullahs used to go to England.”
Regarding violence in Bengal, Amit Shah said that it is a matter of shame that women were exploited right under the nose of Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee.
Regarding the claim that Mayawati is working for the BJP, Amit Shah stated that such allegations have been going on in elections. He emphasized that the ideology of Mayawati’s party does not align even remotely with that of the BJP. On the topic of the Uniform Civil Code (UCC), he said that it is a priority for the BJP, and any actions taken will be conducted in Parliament, not in public protests like those led by Kejriwal. Shah also mentioned that the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) has been implemented and people have begun receiving citizenship.
