Narendra Modi Mega Exclusive | I Feel Congress Manifesto Has the Stamp of the Muslim League, Says PM

Prime Minister Narendra Modi during an exclusive interview to News18 Network18. (News18)

The Congress manifesto for the ongoing Lok Sabha elections seems to have the stamp of the Muslim League, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said in a mega exclusive interview to News18 Network, adding that while he is talking about inheritance of development, the opposition party is seeking to “plunder that inheritance”.

Speaking to Network18 Group Editor-in-Chief Rahul Joshi, PM Modi said he waited for 10 days for the “evils” of the Congress manifesto to be brought out in an unbiased manner, but was forced to bring some “truths” out.

“So far as the Congress manifesto is concerned, someone please tell me, are the manifestos of political parties during elections a mere showpiece? It is the work of the media to read the manifestos of every political party. I was waiting for the media to comment on it. I had commented on the manifesto on the first day. After seeing the manifesto, I feel that it has the stamp of the Muslim League. I thought that the media will be shocked. But they just kept saying whatever was presented by the Congress.”

“Then I thought that this seems to be a big scam of the ecosystem and I will have to bring out the truth. I waited for 10 days that the evils in the manifesto would be brought out by someone because if it is brought out in an unbiased manner, it is good. Finally, I was forced to bring out these truths,” he said.

Asked whether his claim of the Congress wanting to “redistribute” wealth among Muslims is a real threat, PM Modi called for a closer look at his election campaign.

“I feel that maybe your team has not tracked my entire campaign… You must have seen that my entire election campaign is focused on two things. One, we have done work for the welfare of society. The biggest difference in this government [compared to previous ones] is that last-mile delivery is our specialty. See, no government is formed to do bad, it wants to do good. Some people know how to do good for others, some people wait for good things to happen. I am a person who believes in working hard and getting things done.”

Detailing the initiatives his government has taken for the people, PM Modi said: “I am continuously saying in the elections that we have built 4 crore houses for the poor. I tell so many people that when you go for this election campaign, please help me by sending a list of people whose houses have not been built. As soon as my third term starts, I want to take this work forward.”

Confident of securing a record third term as Prime Minister, Modi also laid out his vision for the future.

“I want to build 3 crore more houses. Now, the Ayushman Bharat Yojana is the world’s largest health insurance and health assurance scheme. This is the assurance of treatment to 55 crore people. It is an assurance that Modi’s government is with you. This time, we have said in the manifesto that no matter which class, society, background a person belongs to, whoever is above 70 years of age — both men and women — will get free treatment up to Rs 5 lakh. This time we have also said in the manifesto that we will give this benefit to ASHA workers. We will give benefits to transgenders, no matter what their age is.”

“The condition of banks in our country was poor. More than half of the population of the country was such that it gave money to open accounts in banks but the banks never opened their accounts. Then Modi came and opened 52 crore bank accounts, and I took the biggest advantage of it. I took the trinity of Jan Dhan, mobile and Aadhaar and encouraged Direct Benefit Transfer. A sum of Rs 36 lakh crore — the figure is very big — has gone into people’s accounts [via Direct Benefit Transfer]. This huge financial inclusion has happened in our country [due to opening of accounts]. This is more than the number of accounts that would have opened in the world in a year,” he added.

Comparing the performance of his government to the pre-2014 situation, PM Modi said: “You see, what was the situation before 2014? ‘Fragile 5’ used to be the headline. Today, we have become a vibrant economy. In IMF, there is a group of 150 countries of the world — which includes China and India — which we can call developing countries or countries with an emerging economy.”

Commenting on Congress overseas wing president Sam Pitroda’s comments on inheritance tax, PM Modi said: “One of their greats gave an interview in America where he brought up the issue of inheritance tax, about 55% tax on your property. Now I am talking about development and inheritance and they are talking of plundering that inheritance. Their history till date is about doing what they have mentioned in the manifesto. It is my responsibility to tell the countrymen that they are taking the country in this direction. Now you decide whether you want to go or not. But it is my responsibility that on the basis of facts and importance, I should tell you [the truth].”

Check Lok Sabha Election 2024 Phase 3 Schedule, Key Candidates And Constituencies At News18 Website.