Previous govts cheated SC, ST, OBCs in name of social justice: PM Modi in Amroha

LUCKNOW/BIJNOR: Attacking the opposition, PM Narendra Modi on Friday accused the INDIA bloc of cheating SC, ST and OBC communities in the name of social justice .

“INDIA bloc ne samajik nyay ke naam Dalit aur pichhdon se dhokha kiya... Ye hamesha gaon aur gareeb ko pichhda rakhna chahte hain (The opposition leaders have only cheated Dalits and OBC in the name of social justice),” PM Modi said at rally in support of BJP candidate Kanwar Singh Tanwar in Amroha , the third in his campaign in the region after Meerut and Saharanpur.

Amroha will go to polls in the second phase on April 26.

Modi’s rally coincided with the first phase of polling in eight west UP districts, which have a sizable population of Muslims, Dalits, and OBCs.

“Jab Modi teen talaq ke khilaf kanoon bana kar apni Muslim behenon ko bachata hai to ye samajik nyay mein madad karta hai….Jab Modi har ghar jal pahunchata hai, gas aur Bijli pahunchata hai to mahilaon ki zindagi aasan hoti hai aur samajik nyay pakka hota hai...(When Modi protects his Muslim sisters by making a law against triple talaq, it helps in social justice….When Modi provides water, gas and electricity to every house, life of women becomes easier and social justice is strengthened..),” he said, adding that a number of generations of backward castes passed without getting basic amenities.

Terming the 2024 Lok Sabha elections as an election to decide the future of the country, Modi said that the BJP was working for the village and poor with a “big vision and big target”.

The PM specially urged the first-time voters to exercise their franchise, which was their constitutional right.

Calling himself ‘Gareeb Ka Beta’, Modi said that he was working day and night to free the poor and downtrodden from the miseries they faced for years.

He said that the SC/ST and OBC were the prime beneficiaries of schemes like the PM Awas Yojana, under which around 4 crore houses were constructed by govt in the last 10 years. He said that another 3 crore houses would be constructed in the next five years if the BJP returns to power.

“Har gareeb ko pucca ghar milega, ye Modi ki guarantee hai,” he said, underlying the BJP’s key campaign punch line.

Accusing the previous Congress, SP, and BSP govts of ignoring the interests of the farmers, Modi highlighted his govt’s PM Samman scheme, under which scores of farmers get Rs 6,000 annually. In Amroha alone, he said, farmers have received Rs 600 crore.

Modi mentioned how govt benefitted the cane farmers while ensuring timely payments of cane dues and increasing the State Advisory Price (SAP) of sugar cane in UP. He pointed out that in Amroha, state govt ensured payment of Rs 1500 crore, which was almost three times of Rs 500 crore that farmers used to get during the previous SP regime.

Modi said that the “mentality” of the opposition leaders has especially dented the west UP region, which could not flourish for years despite being close to Delhi and the National Capital Region.

“Backwardness became the identity of UP during previous govts at the centre and the state. It was BJP govt that fulfilled the dreams once seen by Dalit icons like Jyotiba Phule and BR Ambedkar and farmer leaders like Chaudhary Charan Singh,” he said.

Maintaining that the work done by BJP govt in the last 10 years was just a trailer, Modi said his govt plans to take UP and the country "way ahead".

“UP was now being known because of its expressways. It also had the maximum number of international airports and renovated and modernized railway stations,” he said, making a clear reference to the ambitious Ganga expressway, which would pass through Amroha and other west UP districts. The PM said that developmental projects like expressways and textile parks in the region were aimed at bringing economic and financial benefits to small-scale industries and artisans.