In a move to attract people of the Scheduled Castes (SC) community ahead of upcoming Lok Sabha election, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) cooked and served 5,000 kg “samrasta khichri”.
The event was a gathering of people from backward classes and was organised by the Delhi BJP at the Ramlila Maidan on Sunday.
BJP MP from North West Delhi and Dalit leader Udit Raj, however, was conspicuous by his absence at the event, but the party leaders said not too much should be read into his absence.
The party leaders claimed that almost 5,000 kg of khichri was prepared and served on the occasion. The khichri was prepared with 400 kg rice, 100 kg lentils, 350 kg vegetables, 100 kg desi ghee, 100 litres of oil, 2,500 litres of water and 250 kg spices, one of the cooks said.
The 5,000-kg “samrasta khichdi” was cooked in one utensil, with rice and lentils collected from around three lakh Dalit households in the national capital with an aim to set a world record.
Senior party leaders said the event was more of a “harmony-building” exercise rather than a political event to garner votes ahead of the Lok Sabha elections.
Delhi BJP unit chief Manoj Tiwari said the event sent a message to political parties not to indulge in divisive politics, but spread unity.
“The dal and rice for this event has been collected from three lakh households and if they were not happy with us they would not have contributed. This khichdi has the message that Narendra Modi will again become the Prime Minister,” he said.
Taking a dig at the Congress and the Aam Aadmi Party, he said, “Arvind Kejriwal and Rahul Gandhi are you upset about the event? We had even invited every political party to be a part of the event.”
“If they were concerned about harmony, Mamata Banerjee, Kejriwal, and others would have come,” he said.
Union Minister Harsh Vardhan said by collecting a handful of rice and half a handful of lentils, the Delhi BJP is sending out a strong message of ‘unity in diversity’.
He said it was a befitting reply to those who divide the country on the basis of caste, region and religion.
When asked about Udit Raj’s absence and whether it is a sign of disharmony in the party, he said, “Can’t you see many Dalit leaders here? If someone has come or not come, I would not know.”
“There are many Dalit leaders and workers. Senior Cabinet Minister Thawarchand Gehlot is here. You draw meanings at your own convenience, “Vardhan said.