 "Sharad Pawar, Sharad, Jayant Patil, Jayant, Patil")
PM Narendra Modi’s ‘bhatakta atma’ jibe at Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief Sharad Pawar during the third phase of Lok Sabha elections will only come to haunt Modi, said the NCP chief. Pawar said on Monday that the language used by the Prime Minister during his election campaigning diminished the dignity of his office.
“In one of his election speeches, Modi called me ‘bhatakti atma’… Good that he said so. According to Modi, ‘atma’ remains forever. And this ‘atma’ will continue to haunt him,” Pawar said at a rally commemorating the 25th Foundation Day of the NCP in Ahmednagar.
At a public meeting in Pune on April 29, PM Modi had remarked, “There is a ‘bhatakti atma’ in Maharashtra… When it is not successful, it ruins the good work of others. The state is a victim of it.” Although he did not name anyone, the comments were seemingly directed at Sharad Pawar.
Pawar questions legitimacy of Modi 3.0
Questioning whether Modi had the mandate to take office as the Prime Minister for the third time, Pawar said, “Did Modi have the people’s mandate before he took the oath of office? Did he have the consent of the people? He did not have the majority. He took the help of the Bihar Chief Minister and TDP to form the government.”
All eight newly elected MPs of the party (NCP), along with the party’s state chief Jayant Patil, Jitendra Ahwad, and other leaders, were present at the rally.
Recalling Modi’s campaign speeches, Pawar said, “Wherever Modi went during the election campaign, he emphasised Modi Sarkar and Modi Guarantee. The Modi Guarantee no longer exists. Similarly, there is no Modi Sarkar. Modi was forced to state that it is not Modi Sarkar but Indian government and Bharat Sarkar. He was compelled to change his stance.”
Pawar asserted that the Prime Minister should not belong to any particular party, but Modi forgot this. “It is expected that the Prime Minister of this country should think about all sections of society, people of all castes, creeds, and religions. But Modi forgot this. I don’t think he actually forgot; it was part of his ideology. Whether Muslims, Christians, Sikhs, Parsis… minorities, whichever denomination they belong to, are an important part of the country. The rulers have the responsibility to create confidence in them. But Modi failed to inspire confidence among the minorities.”
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PM Modi dishonoured the dignity of office: Sharad Pawar
Recalling another speech by the PM during the election rallies, Pawar said, “During one of his rallies, Modi mentioned a particular community in the country where more children are born, implying the Muslim community… Then he said if the INDIA bloc comes to power, they will snatch your mangalsutra. He also mentioned that INDIA bloc people would take away the farmer’s buffalo. What was he talking about? Is this what a Prime Minister of this country should discuss in his speeches? Modi did not maintain the decorum of his office. As political parties, we attack each other, but we maintain certain decorum.”
Criticising the Prime Minister for calling the Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena ‘nakli’ (fake) Shiv Sena, Pawar said, “Bal Thackeray formed the Shiv Sena and elevated it to new heights. The BJP allied with Shiv Sena and formed a government, gaining the confidence of the Marathi manoos. Now, Modi calls Balasaheb Thackeray’s Shiv Sena ‘nakli’ Shiv Sena. Does it suit someone holding the Prime Minister’s office? This indicates that when a person knows it will be difficult to return to power, he resorts to making such wild statements and becomes restless.”
[With inputs from PTI]
