'What's the Need For Muslim Quota?' Rajnath Singh Exposes Congress' 'Muslim First' Policy

New Delhi: Union Defence Minister Rajnath Singh recently targeted the Congress party for making the Muslim quota an election issue by categorising the community as a backward caste for reservation purposes in Karnataka in the midst of the Lok Sabha poll season. Speaking exclusively to Arnab Goswami, Editor-in-Chief of Republic Media Network, Singh took a sharp swipe at the Congress and questioned the need for Muslim reservation. 

When asked why the BJP has raised such an issue, the Defence Minister said that it's the Opposition who first stoked controversy, not the BJP. “Why can’t Congress consider all citizens equal?” he asked.

Speaking exclusively to Republic, Rajnath Singh said, “The Opposition has raised the entire issue of Muslim quota. When they raise such a matter, the Prime Minister is bound to reply in a public forum.”

Singh added that BJP doesn't support the politics of caste, creed and religion. “We have always played politics of ‘insaaf and insaaniyat’ (justice and humanity),” he said. 

Slamming the Congress for its ‘Muslim first’ approach to politics, Singh added that the welfare schemes of the BJP government reached all citizens without discrimination. 

Karnataka: Muslim Reservation

The Congress-led Karnataka government found itself at the centre of a controversy after it announced the inclusion of all castes and communities of Muslims in the Other Backward Classes (OBC) category. 

The decision came when the nation was undergoing the Lok Sabha elections. The National Commission of Backward Classes (NCBC) said such blanket categorisation undermines the principles of social justice.

Rajnath Speaks to Arnab: Top Points

1. Rajnath Singh vowed to continue the politics of development, rejecting discrimination in political space. “We don't discriminate on the basis of religion, our politics is driven towards nation-building, rajniti (politics) is based on nyay (justice), meaning to carry out, to take the country in the right direction.”
2. The senior BJP leader further explained why two phases of the Lok Sabha Elections 2024 witnessed a low voter turnout. “I believe that the Opposition parties have failed to come together and in turn, they have not been able to impress people or the voters. Hence, the voters have understood that the government will be made by PM Modi. Those who are not coming to vote are the vote bank of the Opposition, as they are disheartened that their leaders have not been able to impress.” 
3. Taking a swipe at the Opposition over their accusations that the Enforcement Directorate (ED) and Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) are working under the control of the Centre, Singh asserted that if probe agencies are taking illegal action, then the accused can approach the court. “If ED and CBI are taking the wrong action, the accused can approach the court. If the court is not providing relief, it means that the arrest has been done on relevant grounds,” he said. 
4. The Defence Minister further clarified the Indo-China border row, asserting that “not an inch of our land can be captured”. Rajnath Singh added that the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government will never compromise the national interest and that the issues between both nations will be resolved with peaceful talks.