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Journalism of Courage
Maintaining that “we are in a comfortable position” and “already have the numbers” to form the next government, BJP leader and Union Home Minister Amit Shah has said while he agrees that a strong Opposition is good for democracy, “it’s the janata (people) who will decide that” and it cannot be determined by the wishes of a section.
Shah made these remarks in an interview with The Indian Express Saturday at his residence in New Delhi, shortly after polling ended for the sixth phase of the elections – the seventh and last phase is on June 1.
Asked to comment on the growing bitterness between the ruling party and the Opposition, Shah laid the blame at Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s door, holding him responsible for the downslide in the country’s political standards.
“In my opinion, it’s after the entry of Rahul Gandhi in the party that the Congress’s behaviour has changed, the standards of politics have fallen after that.” This, he said, had also influenced the attitude of those parties which had formed a “gathbandhan” with the Congress.
He was confident that at the end of the sixth phase of polling, the BJP was in a position to form the government. “We are somewhere between 300 and 310… this is minus the last phase… we are in a comfortable position,” he said.
Ruling out the possibility of Narendra Modi retiring, as was being made out by his opponents, he said not only will Modi be sworn in as Prime Minister again in June but “even in 2029, the Prime Minister will lead us”.
There was neither “a rule” nor a provision in the party’s constitution, he said, which laid down the retirement age at 75, either for the PM or for anyone else. “Certain decisions were made in a certain situation; when that situation doesn’t exist, those rules aren’t there,” he said.
Asked about there being no Muslim BJP MP in a mainline party which had broadbased itself and was now aiming for a third term in office, Shah said, “I don’t believe in appeasement. None of our schemes is based on religion, we haven’t discriminated against anyone.”
Looking ahead at the issue of delimitation due in 2026, which is exercising the southern states as they fear their numbers in Parliament (in relation to the northern states) will go down and diminish their clout, he said he wanted to assure the South that “no injustice” will be done.
“I have said that there won’t be any anyay (injustice) with the South, that’s the BJP’s decision. How do we do it, we will sit down with everyone and discuss. We will not defer delimitation.” He also said Assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir will take place in September this year – “I have said in Parliament that elections will be held.”
Expressing satisfaction at the voter turnout in Kashmir in the ongoing Lok Sabha elections, he said it was a vindication of the BJP’s policy of abrogating Article 370 of the Constitution.
Shah hit out at NCP leader Sharad Pawar when he was asked if he would do things differently in Maharashtra if it were possible to turn the clock back to 2019. “We were the ones at the receiving end. After the 2019 elections, when the Assembly elections happened, we got a majority. Sharad Pawar took our friend, Uddhavji, away. He was our friend, we had fought elections as an alliance. Whoever started this will have to end it.”
Asked if Uddhav Thackeray would be accepted back into the NDA fold – Assembly elections are due in Maharashtra later this year – he said, “We have an alliance and it’s working well.”
Referring to fears in certain quarters that the BJP with its “400 paar” slogan planned to change the Constitution, end reservation for Dalits, remove the word “secular” from the Preamble, Shah said, “For 10 years, we had the numbers to bring about these changes. There is no reason at all to suspect our intentions.”
