In Punjab’s Doaba region having highest-concentration of dalit population, the Bharatiya Janata Party national president Amit Shah on Sunday went all out to woo the Scheduled Caste community maintaining that SAD-BJP was the only alliance which is concerned about their plight.
Shah’s claims came at a time when the main opposition party, the Congress, is targeting the SAD-BJP combine for being apathetic towards the SC community.
“It is the Akali-BJP alliance alone which has acknowledged the contribution and the concerns of Dalits in the state,” said Shah while addressing a state-level conference of booth-level workers in Jalandhar.
Shah said: “Why did the Congress, which is now claiming to be the saviour of the Dalit community, not show any concern when it was ruling the stateIJ In fact, its leaders tried hard not to allow Baba Sahib Bhim Rao Ambedkar to enter the Parliament and it was former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee who acknowledged his efforts and conferred Bharat Ratna upon him.”
“It was our government that had called a special Parliament session to observe Ambedkar’s 125th birth anniversary,” he said adding that the continuation of the SAD-BJP alliance in the forthcoming Punjab Assembly elections is important to maintain peace in the state.
Dalits constitute about 32 percent of the population in Punjab, which is the highest, percentage-wise, among all states. Of this, around 45 percent SC population is concentrated in Doaba region. It is also not uncommon to see dalits living in mansions and driving luxury cars.
Doaba region elects 23 legislators to the 117-member Punjab Vidhan Sabha.
At the same time, Shah appreciated Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal for installing a huge idol of Valmiki at Amritsar saying that the community is now feeling relieved.
Calling Parkash Singh Badal as the “most pious Chief Minister in the country”, Shah said that the ruling alliance do not have to worry about winning the forthcoming elections as it is not the contestants but the work of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the Punjab Chief Minister alone that would secure a win with a huge margin this time.
“I am in politics since my childhood. I don’t have any hesitation in admitting that the country is not having any ‘pious and pavitra’ Chief Minister than Badal saab,” he said. Shah also exhorted the workers to vote for SAD-BJP in the state keeping in mind Modi and Badal as a face.