Mahayuti to win assembly polls with 'huge majority', Haryana-like show in offing: CM Saini

Pune, Nov 11 (PTI) Under Prime Minister Narendra Modi's leadership, the poor hold the first right to the country's resources and this was in sharp contrast to the Congress position that minorities should get priority in accessing them, Haryana CM Nayab Singh Saini said on Monday.

He predicated the BJP's spectacular victory in the just held Haryana assembly polls will be replicated in Maharashtra and the ruling Mahayuti coalition, of which the national saffron outfit is a constituent, will win the November 20 elections with a "huge majority".

Overcoming ten years of anti-incumbency, the BJP won a third straight term in Haryana by bagging 48 of the 90 assembly seats last month.

Addressing a press conference in Pune, the BJP leader, who took over as CM for a second term in October, accused the Congress of orchestrating the 2020-21 farmer agitation against the three contentious agriculture laws, which were later rolled back by the Centre.

Responding to a question that despite the BJP-led Centre's claim of doing a lot of work for the poor, Muslims were not happy with Modi, Saini referred to the PM's thinking on who holds the first right to national resources.

"A Congress Prime Minister (a reference to Manmohan Singh) used to say minorities have the first right to the country's resources. We did not say this. It came from the Congress, but Modi's thinking is that the poor of the country have the first right to resources. This shows a big difference in thinking (of Congress and BJP)," Saini noted.

The Haryana CM emphasised there was no discrimination in implementations of welfare schemes by the Modi government.

"I would like to tell my Muslim brothers that in schemes such as Ujjwala Yojana (free LPG connection), Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (housing), Ayushman Yojana (health), there was no discrimination. No distinction is made on whether the beneficiary is a Hindu or Muslim," he noted.

All these schemes were targeted at 140 crore people of India, he opined.

The BJP leader accused the Congress of resorting to politics of appeasement and discrimination, and seeking to weaken constitutional authorities.

"The Congress insulted the President of India, they insulted Dr Bhimrao Ambedkar. On the contrary, the BJP-led government gave respect to Dr Ambedkar by declaring the five places closely associated with him as Panch Teerth," he said.

He said the Congress does vote-bank politics and exploits the poor. "Because of this, the people of Haryana rejected the Congress," Saini noted.

"They promised to give Rs 6,000 as pension (during Haryana polls), but still people rejected them," he added.

To a question on the next week's Maharashtra polls, the CM said voters will give a big mandate in favour of Mahayuti (grand coalition) which also includes the Shiv Sena and the NCP.

Asked if the Aam Aadmi Party divided the Congress votes, paving the way for the BJP to retain power in the northern state, Saini pointed out it was AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal who had vowed not to align with the Grand Old Party.

"He (Kejriwal) used to say that the Congress was defamed to such an extent that if (its leader) Sonia Gandhi was subjected to an inquiry, she will have to go to the Tihar Jail. But those who used to abuse each other later embraced each other. Why they came together? They came together because Modiji has zero tolerance for corruption," the CM stressed.

Saini maintained it was the Congress which pushed cultivators from Punjab and Haryana in the agitation over the farm bills and this was revealed by one of the leaders who took part in the stir.

"It was said that (farmer leaders) tried to create an atmosphere in favour of the Congress, but the Congress could not cash on it. It shows the Congress orchestrated the agitation. The Congress was trying to create instability, but people understood its motive," Saini said. PTI SPK RSY