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UP elections: Opposition soft on terror due to vote bank, says Modi in Unnao
Modi’s allegation came days after a special court in Gujarat awarded death penalty to 38 convicts and sentenced 11 others to life imprisonment for the serial blasts in Ahmedabad
In a scathing attack on the opposition Samajwadi Party and Congress, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday accused the two parties of being sympathetic to terrorists and claimed that the previous Samajwadi Party-led government in Uttar Pradesh had sought to withdraw cases against several terror accused as “a return gift”.
Modi’s allegation came days after a special court in Gujarat awarded death penalty to 38 convicts and sentenced 11 others to life imprisonment for the serial blasts in Ahmedabad, in which 21 explosions within a span of 70 minutes left 56 people dead and over 200 injured on July 26, 2008.
“The attitude of Samajwadi Party and Congress leaders is more dangerous. These people call a terrorist like Osama (Bin Laden) with ji (honorific). These people shed tears on the death of terrorists involved in the Batla House encounter…,” Modi said during a rally in Hardoi district of the state where assembly elections are currently underway.
By saying “Osama ji”, Modi was referring to a remark made for the slain terrorist by Congress leader Dijvijaya Singh in 2011. He was also referring to a remark made by another Congress leader, Salman Khurshid, at a rally in Azamgarh in 2012 that Congress chief Sonia Gandhi had wept after being shown photographs of the Balta House encounter.
The encounter between Delhi Police’s Special Cell and Indian Mujahideen operatives at Batla House in Jamia Nagar had taken place in September 2008, just days after a serial blast had rocked the national capital, in which at least 26 people were killed and 133 injured.
Both Singh and Khurshid later said their remarks were quoted out of context.
Referring to the Ahmedabad blasts, Modi said: “Serial blasts had rocked Ahmedabad when I was chief minister of Gujarat. I can’t forget that day. As those who lost their family members wailed, I picked up the blood-soaked soil and took a ‘sankalp’ (vow) that my government will track these terrorists, even from ‘paataal’ (netherworld), and punish them.”
Targeting the Samajwadi Party, Modi said he wondered why the terrorists had opted for “bicycle”, the party’s election symbol, to plant bombs in the initial blasts in the Gujarat capital.
“... initially all the bombs were placed on a cycle, the Samajwadi Party election symbol. I wonder why they chose the cycle for placing the bombs,” he told the crowd.
“In 2007, a terrorist attack was carried out in Gorakhpur. In 2013, the then Samajwadi Party-led government sought to withdraw the case against a terrorist but the court turned down its request. The terrorist was later convicted and sentenced to 20 years in prison. Similarly, serial court blasts rocked Lucknow and Ayodhya. The then state government again sought to withdraw the case against the terrorists but the court sentenced the accused to life imprisonment In all, in 14 cases, all related to terror attacks in Uttar Pradesh, the Samajwadi Party government sought to withdraw cases against the terrorists,” he alleged.
Cautioning people to be wary of such parties, Modi said: “Beware of such political parties who, due to their own vested interests, risk the country and compromise with national security.”
Intensifying his attack, Modi said, “Some days they will insult the Indian Army, while some other days they will insult the police. On the other hand, our government has made the National War Memorial and the National Police Memorial. We give respect to every martyr.”
Hitting out at Yadav earlier in the day, Modi said the chief ministerial candidate was “insecure” about his seat and had to seek help from his father whom he had “humiliated” to capture the party.
“Imagine the plight of a party, whose chief had to request the same person to bail him out on his seat, whom he had insulted on way to capturing the party,” Modi said while addressing a rally in Unnao.
Hitting back, SP national spokesperson Abdul Hafiz Gandhi said: “The SP government had never sought withdrawal of terror cases. Mr Prime Minister is lying just for the sake of votes.”
“Who made an accused in terror activity Pragya Thakur an MP and who dropped terrorists in Kandhar? Since BJP did no development, it is trying to mislead people through such baseless statements,” state Congress spokesperson Zeeshan Haider said.
