Hisar, Apr 14: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday launched a scathing attack on the Congress for changing the Waqf laws for "appeasement politics," claiming that if the Waqf Board had functioned according to its original purpose, Muslims in India would not have been forced to live in poverty, doing menial jobs like "fixing punctures."

He accused the Congress of altering the Waqf rules to benefit its vote bank at the cost of the Constitution and social justice.

Addressing a large gathering in Hisar, PM Modi said, "Congress made the Constitution a tool for gaining power. During the Emergency, the spirit of the Constitution was killed to retain power. The Constitution talks about a secular civil code, but Congress never implemented it."

He referred to the implementation of the Uniform Civil Code (UCC) in BJP-ruled Uttarakhand as an example of constitutional commitment.

He also targeted Congress over its approach to reservations, stating,

Our Constitution proposed reservations for SC/ST and OBCs. However, Congress never cared to check if the benefits reached these communities. To play politics and for its appeasement politics, Congress murdered this dream of Baba Saheb and brought a law to give reservations on the basis of religion in government tenders. Even though Baba Saheb had mentioned that there should be no place for reservation on the basis of religion."

He cited the Congress-led Karnataka government's proposal to offer 8 per cent reservation to Muslims in government contracts as a case in point.

PM Modi accused the Congress of changing the Waqf law in 2013 for electoral gains, claiming the amendment was done in haste without regard to its constitutional implications.

"For vote bank politics, Congress changed the Waqf law and made it superior to the Constitution formed by Baba Saheb. This was the biggest insult to Baba Saheb," he said.

He questioned Congress' sincerity towards the Muslim community, asking, "They say they did that in favour of Muslims. I want to ask these vote-bank-hungry politicians- if they truly had empathy for Muslims, why doesn't Congress appoint a Muslim as party president? Why don't they give 50 per cent of their tickets to Muslims? They don't want to do that but want to give away 50 per cent of the country's rights."

PM Modi explained the original purpose of the Waqf Board, saying it was meant to uplift poor and marginalised Muslims, especially women.

"If it had been used as per its purpose, then today, my Muslim youth would not have had to spend their lives fixing punctures on bicycles. This only benefited land mafias and not the poor or Pashmanda Muslims," he said.

He noted that thousands of Muslim women had written to the central government, highlighting the misuse of Waqf properties, which led to the amendment of the law.

"According to the new Waqf law, land or property owned by any Adivasi cannot be appropriated by the Waqf Board. Poor and Pasmanda Muslims will receive their rights. This represents real social justice," he added.

PM Modi also accused Congress of disrespecting national icons by not conferring them with the highest civilian honour.

"Congress did not give Bharat Ratna to Baba Saheb Ambedkar and Chaudhary Charan Singh. Baba Saheb was accorded the Bharat Ratna when the NDA government was formed at the Centre. At the same time, we are proud that it was the BJP government which presented the Bharat Ratna to Chaudhary Charan Singh," he said.

These remarks came when PM Modi marked Ambedkar Jayanti by laying the foundation stone of the new terminal building at Maharaja Agrasen Airport in Hisar, Haryana, and flagging off the inaugural flight to Ayodhya.

The launch of scheduled flights from Hisar - twice weekly to Ayodhya and thrice weekly to Jammu, Ahmedabad, Jaipur, and Chandigarh --represents a major boost to Haryana's aviation network.

The new terminal project, valued at over Rs 410 crore, will feature a modern passenger terminal, a dedicated cargo facility, and an air traffic control building.

During this, PM Modi paid homage to Baba Saheb Dr Bhim Rao Ambedkar on his birth anniversary, calling it a "Diwali" for Dalits, the marginalised and backward communities.

He also said that before 2014, India had just 74 airports, however, since the last decade, the number has crossed the 150 mark highlighting significant strides in easing connectivity as compared to efforts made by the previous government.

IANS

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