New Delhi: BJP spokesperson Sambit Patra on Friday took a jibe at Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, referring to him as ‘Alamgir Rahuljeb’.
“Alamgir Rahul will never be able to become Jahanpanah. He is on the path of Muslim appeasement. His desires will not be washed away in 4% tears, but in 100% tears,” Patra asserted at a media meet here.
In a sharp attack on the Congress party, the BJP accused it of indulging in appeasement politics over the decision to provide 4% reservation to Muslims in government contracts in Karnataka.
The bill enabling 4% reservation for Muslims in government contracts was passed in the Karnataka Assembly amid protests.
BJP legislators created a ruckus in the assembly, terming the legislation unconstitutional and detrimental to the rights of Other Backward Classes (OBCs). The party alleged that the Siddaramaiah-led Congress government introduced the bill at the behest of Rahul Gandhi.
Patra further alleged that the reservation, applicable to tenders up to Rs 2 crore under the Karnataka Transparency in Public Procurement (KTPP) Act, was a blatant act of appeasement. “This is nothing but the height of appeasement politics,” he stated.
The BJP leader also criticised Karnataka’s state budget, calling it a “Muslim budget.” He cited various provisions, including a Rs 6,000 monthly allowance for Imams, Rs 150 crore allocation for the Waqf Board, expansion of Haj Bhavan in Bengaluru, Rs 50,000 financial aid for Muslim marriages, Rs 100 crore for Urdu schools, and ITI colleges in Muslim-dominated areas.
Additionally, he highlighted a Rs 1,000 crore allocation for a Muslim colony, as well as fee concessions and self-defence training for Muslim students.
Amid the uproar over the bill, BJP MLAs staged a strong protest inside the Karnataka Assembly. Marshals were deployed to remove protesting legislators, resulting in the suspension of 18 BJP MLAs. The opposition party has vowed to challenge the bill legally and politically. UNI
