It's our duty to convince Muslim voters, says CT Ravi

BJP national general secretary CT Ravi on Saturday said his party will try to convince Muslim voters on the basis of development works of the Modi administration, but not indulge in “vote-bank politics like the Congress.”

Ravi was responding to a question on Modi having urged BJP leaders, including former chief minister B S Yediyurappa, to reach out to Muslim voters.

“Modi has said it’s our duty to tell voters, including those who oppose us, about what we’ve done in terms of benefits provided by the government,” Ravi said. “In my Chikmagalur constituency, I got Rs 37 crore grants for the education of children belonging to the minorities. That’s not appeasement,” he said.

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Targeting Congress, Ravi pointed out that no programme or scheme of the BJP government was religion- or caste-based. “Was the Bhagya Lakshmi scheme caste-based? But, the Siddaramaiah-led Congress government had caste-based schemes - Tour Bhagya for schoolchildren and Shaadi Bhagya. Show me one such caste-based scheme of the Modi government,” he said.

The BJP criticised Congress’ policy of giving religion- or caste-based programmes. “We did not target the minorities,” he said. “Congress wooed Tipu Sultan as its policy. If you compare Tipu Sultan and Nalwadi Krishnaraja Wadiyar, whose contribution is more to Mysuru? Except that he fought the British, everything else about Tipu Sultan had cruelty,” Ravi argued. “It’s not that Congress loves Tipu. They just want votes that they might get in his name. We don’t do vote-bank politics like Congress,” he said.

'Conspiracy'

Slamming the BBC documentary on the 2002 Gujarat riots, Ravi described it as "an international conspiracy to weaken India's democracy".

Ravi said the document was "not honest" as it omitted findings of the Nanavati and Shah Commissions. "There is no mention of the Supreme Court giving Modi a clean chit in January 2022," he said. "Don't you have faith in the Supreme Court? Would you rather believe the British? It shows that some people still have a slavish mindset," he said.

The documentary, according to Ravi, is the handiwork of those who cannot digest India's growth as a global power. "Our country's Tukde Gangs, anti-Modi gangs and desperate political enemies have joined hands," he said, adding that the documentary has interviews of only "anti-Modi people".