Maharashtra Election: PM Modi says ‘parasitic’ Congress never praises Bal Thackeray, ‘I challenge them to…’

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday launched a scathing attack on the Congress and the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) alliance during a rally in Maharashtra's Nasik.

PM Modi said that the Congress is no longer the All India Congress but has now become a "parasitic Congress" as it lives off other parties in different states. "This Congress party is now surviving only on crutches," he said.

Addressing the rally in Nasik, PM Modi said, "The people of the country have rejected the Congress because of its poor track record. The Congress is no longer All India Congress. It's a parasitic Congress living off other parties."

"Be it Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar or Jharkhand...in most of the states, it can fight elections only with the help of other parties, and therefore, to save itself, the party has resorted to weakening the unity of the SC, ST and OBC in the country," PM Modi said.

PM Modi's challenge

The prime minister also challenged the Congress leaders to praise Shiv Sena founder Bal Thackeray, claiming that they had never praised Balasaheb.

"Balasaheb Thackeray's contribution to the politics of the country and Maharashtra is incomparable. But not a single word comes out from the mouth of Congress leaders in praise of Balasaheb Thackeray," PM Modi said.

"I challenge my Congress friends in the Mahagathbandhan... they should get the Congress leaders to praise Bala Saheb Thackeray and his ideology," PM Modi said.

Maharashtra Election: Top quotes of PM Modi in Nashik

1. "The Congress never allowed Marathi language to get the status of an elite language. Congress people abuse Veer Savarkar. They come to Maharashtra and insult Veer Savarkar."

2. “The truth is that the Congress despise the OBC. A person from the OBC has become the PM of the country for the third time, and the Congress can't come to terms with this truth. The Congress has lost its sleep. They are venting their anger on the OBC.”

3. "OBCs were never able to unite so much during the Congress rule. OBCs got reservations only when the Congress government was ousted. During Nehru's time, the Congress kept OBCs divided into different castes, then Indira Gandhi also had the same attitude and the same was the case with Rajiv Gandhi. These people never allowed OBCs to unite and as soon as OBCs united in the 90s and became powerful, the Congress stopped forming governments with full majority."

4. "The Congress and its allies neither care about Baba Saheb Ambedkar's Constitution, nor about the court, nor about the sentiments of the country. They carry the book of the Constitution in their pockets just for show. These Congress people are the ones who did not allow Baba Saheb's Constitution to be implemented in Jammu and Kashmir for 75 years."

5. "What have these people not done to pull the country backwards in defence manufacturing? They spread falsehoods about HAL, stirred up controversies, and incited employees. However, HAL has now emerged as a company with record profits. When policies are clear and intentions are good, you get good results..."