The Opposition criticized Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday for his claim that he has “never uttered a word against minorities,” accusing him of lying and perpetuating hate speech against Muslims from various platforms. Modi had said that neither he nor the BJP has ever acted against minorities, he also said that he does not recognize any group as “special citizens.”
BJP MP Sudhanshu Trivedi defended Modi, stating that the Prime Minister’s policies have benefited all citizens and accusing the Congress of violating the secular spirit of the Constitution. Trivedi argued that Modi’s campaign speeches aim to expose the opposition’s minority appeasement tactics for vote-bank politics.
CPI General Secretary D Raja dismissed Modi’s remarks as false, stating, “It is completely a lie. Modi knows how they [BJP] have been talking about Muslims. Who spoke about mangalsutra, mothers giving births to more children? Muslims and other minorities have been disrespected and deprived of many of their due rights.” Raja alleged that the BJP-RSS has a “sinister design” to undermine and ridicule minorities.
TMC MP Sagarika Ghose and AAP MP Sanjay Singh also condemned Modi’s statements. Singh described the Prime Minister’s comments as laughable, accusing him of daily hate speech. He criticized the BJP for allegedly celebrating those involved in crimes against Muslims, citing instances such as the garlanding of the rapists of Bilkis Bano and those who lynched a Muslim cattle trader. He remarked, “When you think he cannot lie anymore, he speaks another lie… This is the party which garlanded the rapists of Bilkis Bano, this is the party which garlanded those who lynched a Muslim cattle trader. Modi himself speaks of ‘shamshan, kabristan’, (UP Chief Minister) Yogi (Adityanath) speaks of 80/20.”
Singh further accused the BJP of fostering divisions within the Hindu community and inciting conflicts with other religious groups and castes, saying, “First make Hindus fight with Muslims, then make Hindus fight with Sikhs, then with Christians, then make them fight Buddhists, make Marathas fight non-Marathas, make Dalits fight backwards… This is Bharatiya ‘jhagda’ party and this is their job.”
DMK spokesperson T K S Elangovan also criticized Modi, stating that his lies are quickly exposed, leading to a lack of public trust. Elangovan remarked, “Whatever he says, his government does something that makes it a lie. So people do not believe him.”
