Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday characterised the BJP-led NDA’s victory in Maharashtra as people’s rejection of the Congress’s “divisive” campaign around the Constitution and said the Congress has become a “parasite party” that is “sinking and dragging its allies down as well”. He blamed the Gandhis, referring to them as “the royal family” for hollowing out the Congress in their “hunger for power”.

In a speech replete with references to Constitution-makers and B. R. Ambedkar, the PM attacked the “politics of appeasement” of the Congress which he said was an antithesis to the Constitutional scheme and said: “Congress and its allies have again started building the wall of Article 370 in Jammu and Kashmir. Maharashtra has proved that this would not work. Listen to me, Congress party and its allies, no power in the world can bring back Article 370.”

Modi cited Waqf Board as another instance of the Congress’ “appeasement politics” and accused the principal opposition party for giving a death sentence to secularism”. “People of Delhi will be shocked, in 2014 just before they demitted office, many properties around Delhi were given to Waqf Board. The Constitution that was given by Babasaheb Ambedkar has no place for Waqf Board. Congress created Waqf Board for appeasement to create their vote bank. They have given a death sentence to secularism,” the PM said.

Analysing the Maharashtra results, the PM said the Congress has become a “parasite party” which is sinking and taking its allies along.

‘Stale and failing’

“Congress has become a parasite on others in Indian politics. It has become difficult for them to come to power on their own. It has been proved again and again in Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Sikkim and Haryana. They have been decimated in Maharashtra. Their politics is stale and failing. Congress is a parasite that is sinking and taking its allies along. We saw in Maharashtra that Congress lost four in every five seats. The strike rate of every constituent of MVA is less than 20 per cent,” the PM said.

He said the Congress’ allies have realised that it’s a sinking ship and are deserting them. He blamed the “royal family of the Congress” for the party’s downfall.

“It is good that their allies have dumped them in UP otherwise they would have suffered. In their hunger for power, the family of the Congress has destroyed the spirit of secularism. Our Constitution makers in 1947, despite the strain of partition in the spirit of Hindu values, had chosen secularism. But the Congress royal family, in the name of false secularism has played the politics of appeasement. Politics of appeasement is a fraud on Constitution. This family has done a fraud on the Constitution. For appeasement politics, they made laws and even ignored the Supreme Court,” said the PM.

Modi mounted a scathing attack on the Gandhis whom he accused of “devouring their own party”.

“The royal family of the Congress is so power hungry that they have destroyed the politics of social justice. There was a time that they used to talk against the caste system. But the royal family of Congress, for their own power hunger, is spreading the poison of casteism. They have throttled social justice. Such is the hunger for power of one family that they have devoured their own party… This family has created such a situation that any committed work feels suffocated. Their priority is only one family, not the people of India. Such a party is against democracy. They go to the South and abuse the North and go abroad and abuse the Nation. Such is their arrogance that they respect no one and they tell lies all the time,” he said.

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