Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Wednesday said that if the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) wins the upcoming Maharashtra assembly elections, the state will become an “ATM” for the Congress.
“They (MVA) will withdraw funds from Maharashtra using the state’s resources and send the money to Delhi,” Shah said at a rally in Chalisgaon, Jalgaon district.
Shah claimed that if the BJP-led Mahayuti forms the government, Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s administration would prioritise development in the state.
“The BJP is going to form the government in Jharkhand, and the Mahayuti government will come to power in Maharashtra,” Shah said. “This is because Congress makes false promises and misleads people.”
He also criticised Congress leader Rahul Gandhi over a recent incident involving a copy of the Indian Constitution.
“Recently, Rahul Gandhi was seen waving a copy of Babasaheb Ambedkar’s Constitution. He used the same copy when taking the oath in Parliament,” Shah said. “When journalists got their hands on that copy, it had blank pages. By showing a fake Constitution, Rahul broke the trust of the people and insulted Babasaheb. Apparently, you have never read the Indian Constitution, Rahul Baba.”
Shah accused the Congress of ignoring national security issues during the tenure of the Sonia Gandhi-Manmohan Singh government, claiming it failed to act on Naxalism and terrorism due to vote bank politics.
He also dismissed claims that investment in Maharashtra had dropped under the current government.
“The truth is that after Eknath Shinde and Devendra Fadnavis formed the government, Maharashtra is now number one in Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in India,” Shah said.
Shah promised further benefits to the people of Maharashtra under a Mahayuti government. “Your one vote will not only form the Mahayuti government in Maharashtra, but it will also deposit Rs 2,100 in the accounts of Maharashtra’s sisters. Your one vote will result in depositing Rs 15,000 instead of Rs 12,000 annually in farmers’ accounts,” he said. “Your one vote will strengthen the future of India.”
Shah also criticised Congress for not fulfilling its pre-election promises in states like Telangana, Karnataka, and Himachal Pradesh.
Targeting senior politician Sharad Pawar, Shah said that despite serving as chief minister and Union minister for years, Pawar did nothing to grant classical language status to Marathi.