Ahead of the last phase of elections in the State, Maharashtra Chief MinisterDevendra Fadnavis speaks about the rationale behind the BJP’s decision to field Pragya Singh Thakur from Bhopal and the party’s nationalist pitch and its campaign attacks on NCP chief Sharad Pawar. Excerpts:
The documents recovered by central agencies from Ms. Thakur speak of turning India into a Hindu rashtra. Is ticket to her a step in that direction as the party believes she was falsely framed?
First and foremost, we will, like all other complaints, probe any complaint of inhuman treatment she faced during interrogation by the Maharashtra ATS (Anti-Terrorism Squad). As the Home Minster of the State, it is my responsibility to look into complaints of misbehaviour.
Secondly, we believe the cases against her are false and the party has relied on the investigation carried out by the NIA, which has clearly declared this case as made-up, without any incriminating evidence against the Sadhvi . You see, the narrative of Hindu terrorism was spun in late 2008, when the perceived persecution of the minorities was at its peak following multiple blasts across the country. Since the minorities felt victimised and started moving away from the Congress and the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), a counter-narrative was brought forward and the term Hindu terror was coined.
Ms. Pragya Singh Thakur is our answer to that narrative, which had demeaned the 2,000-year-old Hindu religion. Those who gave trouble to her, those who persecuted her — she will provide an answer to that.
So are you saying there is no Hindu terrorism and it was all right for her to insult ATS chief Hemant Karkare?
No, not at all. The term Hindu terrorism does not exist as far as the BJP is concerned. Having said that, she should not have made the remark against Mr. Karkare, a fine officer who made the supreme sacrifice defending the nation. Despite all her pain and suffering, it is not all right to speak the way she did.
While even seasoned leaders make a mistake, my suggestion to her would be to show restraint in the future… and the party has communicated the same to her too.
Is it right for her to seek votes on account of the alleged atrocities suffered at the hands of ATS officials?
Like I said, it is the responsibility of the prosecution under the CrPC (Code of Criminal Procedure) to press charges against her and prove their theory. Since they did not press, she came out on bail and contested, just like Mr. Rahul Gandhi is out on bail and contesting, although the two cases are completely different. The narrative against her was even being pushed by the public prosecutors. This larger conspiracy to defame Hinduism and the made-up case against her will surely be exposed in future. I will, in fact, if and when a complaint comes — like all other complaints to the Home Minister of the State — look into the alleged ill treatment meted out to her in the ATS offices.
Why is the BJP’s second term campaign for Prime Minister Narendra Modi focussed on nationalism instead of the five years’ development efforts?
Please bear in mind the two narratives [nationalism and development] are playing out intermittently in this Lok Sabha [campaign]. It is just that sometimes, one gets more prominence over the other depending on the day’s rhetoric. Having said that, nationalism is relevant because the people are feeling that fervour in their hearts. The feeling has only been compounded following the manifesto the Congress party presented to the nation: talking of reducing the presence of the Army in Jammu & Kashmir, tweaking the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act, erasing sedition (124-A) from the law books. In such a scenario, nationalism is an issue. It also becomes an issue when the alliance [Congress’s] partner talks of having two Prime Ministers — one for J&K and another for the rest of the country. Finally, when nationalism is an agenda globally — even in the United States and Germany, where borders are an issue — why not in India?
What is your assessment of the party’s chances as some pollsters expect a 30-40 seat loss from 2014?
Firstly, I don’t think we will lose 30 to 40 seats. If anything, much of our gains would come from the East, all of which is coming to us… in fact, the entire northeast. We are expecting a count of over 20 in West Bengal, where there is tremendous anger against the incumbent Chief Minister. Even Odisha and part of Tamil Nadu would vote for us. We should not have any problem going past our 2014 mark.
It seems Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray is setting the agenda in Maharashtra, while your party is busy attacking NCP’s Sharad Pawar?
We have decided not to respond to him [Raj Thackeray] at all, since we believe the MNS meetings will not change voters’ views. Earlier, he had shown documents establishing a meeting between our NSA and the Pakistani envoy but it turned out the document was old… from 2017. Then, he claimed the Pakistani F-16 was never downed as per the Pentagon but that too was proved wrong.
Like this, there are a ‘50 unsubstantiated videos’ of him circulating, should we also put those out without any context? [Mr. Raj] would tie up with Congress and NCP for the Assembly elections since he is aware his politics is finished.
As for Mr. Pawar, we are responding to him since he is the self-designated leader of the mahagatbandhan of the Opposition parties and fighting his last big fight.
