If INDIA bloc comes to power, it will put Babri lock at Ram temple: Amit Shah

NEW DELHI/LAKHIMPUR KHERI/ HARDOI/KANNAUJ: Addressing back-to-back election rallies in Uttar Pradesh's Lakhimpur Kheri, Hardoi and Kannauj on Wednesday, Union home minister Amit Shah said that if the INDIA bloc parties come to power after the ongoing Lok Sabha polls, it will put a "Babri" lock at the Ram temple in Ayodhya. Mr Shah alleged that the leaders of the Opposition coalition did not attend the consecration ceremony at the Ram temple in Ayodhya in their bid to appease their votebank.

At the rallies, Mr Shah accused Congress leader Rahul Gandhi of pushing Pakistan's agenda. He said Mr Gandhi will be defeated in Rae Bareli as well and that "he should settle down in Italy, the only place left for him".

At a rally in support of Union minister of state for home Ajay Mishra, the BJP candidate from Lakhimpur Kheri, Mr Shah accused the Congress, the SP and the BSP of defaming the saffron party and Narendra Modi by saying if the Prime Minister gets 400 seats in the ongoing election, reservations will be done away with.

Referring to SP leader Ram Gopal Yadav's statement in which he said the Ram temple issue is "bekar" (useless), Mr Shah said, "Ram Gopal ji says the temple is useless. Remember me, though it is not going to happen, if the Opposition parties come to power, they will put a Babri naam ka tala (Babri lock) at the Ram temple."

" All of you know who comprises their votebank. Uttar Pradesh will never support those who shy away from Lord Ram's work," the Union minister noted, claiming that if the Opposition wins the Lok Sabha elections, crackers will be burst in Pakistan.

Accusing the SP of being a dynastic party, the senior BJP leader said the Opposition party's chief Akhilesh Yadav is contesting from Kannauj, his wife Dimple Yadav from Manipuri, Aditya Yadav from Budaun, Akshay Yadav from Firozabad and Dharmendra Yadav from Azamgarh.

"Once their children become mature, they will contest from all 80 seats. They are not well-wishers of the Yadav community as well," he claimed..

Holding the Congress responsible for stalling the Ram temple construction for 70 years, the Union home minister said, "When you made Mr Modi the Prime Minister for the second time, he not only won the legal dispute involving the Ram Janmabhoomi but also performed the bhoomi pujan (groundbreaking ceremony) of the Ram temple and its pran pratishtha (consecration) ceremony in January."

Slamming the INDIA bloc, Mr Saha said, "If the alliance gets the majority, who will be its Prime Minister? Will Sharad Pawar, Mamata (Banerjee) Didi, (M.K.) Stalin, Mr Yadav or Mr Gandhi become the Prime Minister? It does not even have a prime ministerial candidate. It neither has a leader nor a policy nor determination."

"After the first three phases of the Lok Sabha polls, Modi Ji has crossed 190 seats... In the fourth phase, under Mr Modi's leadership, we are strongly heading towards 400 seats, while the SP, BSP and Congress have been wiped out," Mr Shah said.

The senior BJP leader alleged, "The Congress, SP and BSP are defaming the BJP and Modi Ji by spreading falsehood. They are saying that if Modi ji gets 400 seats, then reservations will end."

"When the Congress got a majority in Karnataka, a five per cent reservation was given to Muslims. The reservations for Muslims came from the OBC quota. In Andhra Pradesh, the reservation was given to Muslims. There, too, reservations for backward classes were cut. If the BJP gets a majority, then we will end the anti-constitutional Muslim reservation and give it to the backward classes."

Attacking Mr Gandhi, Mr Shah said, "He talks of eradicating poverty in one stroke... Your grandmother (former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi) imposed Emergency, your father (former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi) re-implemented triple talaq and your party has snatched away the reservation of backward communities."

"The Congress party and its cronies -- the SP in Uttar Pradesh -- are anti-backwards people. All backward class people should understand this," he said.

In Hardoi, Mr Shah continued his attack on the Congress and Mr Gandhi and said, "Mr Gandhi took out the Bharat Jodo Yatra. After elections, he will have to take out the Congress dhoondo yatra (find Congress march)," he said, accusing the INDIA bloc parties of being involved in scams worth '12-lakh crores.

On the opposition's attack on the alleged misuse of ED and CBI, Mr Shah said, "I want to tell Mr Gandhi and Mr Yadav, if you do corruption, you will be caught and no one can stop this."

In Kannauj, where Mr Yadav is contesting against the BJP's Subrat Pathak, Mr Shah said that for years, members of Mulayam Singh Yadav's family were elected by the people, but they did not return to the area after winning or losing.

Mr Shah also alleged that during the riots in western Uttar Pradesh, the SP leaders were watching dance performances in Saifai, the native place of the Yadav family. He asked the audience whether they will vote for those who run "family ke dukan" (family shop) or those who hear "Janta ke awaz" (voices of the public) from this seat."