Attacking Congress leader Rahul Gandhi over his recent remarks in the UK, Union Home Minister Amit Shah said that it's not democracy that is in danger, but your family and the idea of dynasty politics that is under threat.
At two public meetings in Uttar Pradesh during the day, he also slammed the Samajwadi Party and the Bahujan Samaj Party. In Azamgarh, which has a sizeable Muslim population, he said under the previous state governments, 24-hour power supply was available only during Ramzan.
Now the BJP government has ensured power to entire Uttar Pradesh and heralded a new period of development, he added. Shah inaugurated the Kaushambi Mahotsav and honoured several players of the Sansad Khel Spardha. Later, he laid the foundation stone for the Harihar music college in Azamgarh.
He said Azamgarh was earlier known as the centre of terrorism, a reference to some of the accused in terror cases like the 2008 Ahmedabad serial bomb blasts hailing from the district. But now its identity has changed to a hub of development, Shah said.
I was the home minister of Gujarat when there were bomb blasts in Ahmedabad. The police had caught the main sutradhaar (culprit) of it from Azamgarh, he said. I want to congratulate Yogi ji (CM Yogi Adityanath). In Azamgarh, which was considered the centre of terror across the country, he got the foundation of a music college laid to give respect to its heritage, Shah said.
In Kaushambi, Shah hit out at Gandhi for claiming in the UK that democracy is under threat, accusing his party of surrounding the Indian democracy with three naasuron (ulcerous wounds) — casteism, dynasty politics and appeasement. But Prime Minister Narendra Modi defeated all three and hence you are afraid, he added.
They say democracy is in danger. Brother, democracy is not in danger, your family is in danger. It is not the idea of India which is in danger, it is the idea of dynasty, your politics of parivarvad (dynasty), which are in danger. It is not the democracy of India, but the autocracy of your family, which is in danger, the senior BJP leader said.
BJP has accused Gandhi of insulting the country on foreign soil and demanded an apology, but the Congress leader has said his position that India's democracy was under attack was known to all. Shah also accused the Congress party of not allowing Parliament to function.
Yesterday, the Parliament was adjourned. In the history of independent India, it has never happened that the Budget Session ended without a sitting and discussion. What was the reason? Rahul Gandhi was disqualified as Lok Sabha MP, the Union minister said.