The demand for a Ram temple in Ayodhya found a loud echo at the BJP’s national convention on Friday, even as party president Amit Shah termed the 2019 general election as a “decisive battle” with an opposition that had come together only to defeat Prime Minister Narendra Modi and asked party leaders and workers to not be complacent about the upcoming poll.
While Mr. Shah highlighted all policy decisions of the Narendra Modi government, the loudest cheers and applause from the 12,000 delegates at the Ram Lila Maidan here were reserved for his assertion that the BJP was in favour of a Ram temple in Ayodhya, followed only by the Goods and Services Tax Council decision on Thursday to exempt companies with a turnover of up to ₹40 lakh.
“The BJP believes that a grand Ram temple should be built at the place of his birth. The Supreme Court is hearing the case and we are desirous that the case be heard soon,” he said.
ADVERTISEMENT
‘Ensure victory for Modi government’
Mr. Shah likened the 2019 Lok Sabha election to the decisive third battle of Panipat between the Marathas and Ahmad Shah Abdali.
“Some battles are limited to their time, others define their era. The third battle of Panipat saw Ahmad Shah Abdali defeating the Marathas who had won 131 battles before that. It led to 200 years of slavery and colonialism. The party should ensure a victory for the Narendra Modi government in 2019, as this battle too will be as decisive,” he told the party’s national convention here.
ADVERTISEMENT
‘Beyond arithmetic’
On the eve of a joint press conference by Samajwadi Party (SP) chief Akhilesh Yadav and Bahujan Samaj Party chief Mayawati to announce their alliance, Mr. Shah said politics was beyond just arithmetic and that chemistry counted for much. “In 2017 too, there was an alliance ranged against us but we won an unprecedented majority in the Assembly polls. In 2019 too, we will win 74 (out of 80) seats in U.P., more than we did in 2014,” he said.
Mr. Shah launched a fierce attack on the Congress and its president, Rahul Gandhi, on the issue of corruption, stating that industrialists Nirav Modi, Mehul Choksi and Vijay Mallya had to flee the country under the BJP and not while the Congress was in power because they were “protected” by it. “I want to tell the country that the chowkidar (guard, reference to Prime Minister Modi) will bring all of them back to face the music,” he said.
NRC exercise
The National Registry of Citizens exercise in Assam was an article of faith with the party as it concerned national security, he said. “When the figure of 40 lakh infiltrators in Assam came out in the NRC exercise, the Opposition raised a hue and cry about what would happen to them as though they were mausere bhai (cousins). We believe that the country needs to be protected from infiltrators,” he said.