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LS poll narrative: Hindu-Muslim or inflation & unemployment?

NT Correspondent

Bengaluru: Electoral politics – among other things – is about building and selling narratives to the electorate and this Lok Sabha poll is no different.

While the ruling BJP was counting on PM Modi’s pan-India popularity and service delivery in its 10 years of rule, the largest Opposition party Congress was trying to tap into any latent anti-incumbency by leading with issues such as inflation, unemployment, charges of corruption and impropriety, besides promises of robust welfare schemes and social justice by way of a nationwide caste census.

However, there has been a sharp change in rhetoric after PM Modi retrogressed to hate speech, innuendo, and fake news targeting the Congress, making Muslims scapegoats.

This past Sunday, Modi in Banswara, Rajasthan, stoked unfounded fears that Congress would seize their wealth and hand it to Muslims, who were labeled as infiltrators and a community with a high birth rate.

He also misrepresented then PM Manmohan Singh’s 2006 speech, claiming the Congressman said Muslims had first claim on the nation’s resources.

Modi reinforced the wealth seizure narrative the next day in Aligarh, repeating the allegation that the Grand Old Party would s sell married Hindu women’s ‘mangalsutra’.

On Tuesday, the PM made another allegation about Congress wanting to carve out “religious” reservation for Muslims from the SC and ST quota share.

Congress leader Sam Pitroda’s support for inheritance and the party distancing itself from it has seen the standard of discourse plummet further.

In response, Congress and its allies have been attributing a lot more time to claiming Modi wanted 400 seats to amend the Constitution.

What BJP said...

“When their (Congress’) government was in power, they said Muslims had the first right on the property of the country. This means they will collect this property and distribute it to whom? They will distribute it to those who have more children, to infiltrators.” — PM Modi

“The Congress and its allies have betrayed the country and have once again come to you with their false manifesto. If you look at the Congress' manifesto, they say that if they form a government, we will implement Sharia law.” —UP CM Yogi Adityanath

“They say they’ll take stock of the gold that our womenfolk have and then distribute it to those who Manmohan Singh said had the first right on the country’s property, meaning Muslims. Brothers and sisters, this ‘urban Naxal’ mentality will not spare even your ‘mangalsutra’.” — PM Modi

The city police commissioner gave us the details but the (state) Home Minister is twisting the facts and looking at it politically in view of their vote bank. They are trying to mislead the people.” —BJP Haveri candidate Basavaraj Bommai (on Hubballi murder)

“The Congress attempted to implement reservation for Muslims on four occasions between 2004 and 2010 but couldn’t because of legal hurdles.” — PM Modi

What Congress said...

“In the first nine years of the Modi government, more than one lakh farmers committed suicide. Every single day, at an average, 30 farmers commit suicide. For the first time in independent India, taxes were imposed on farmers.” — Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge

"Unemployment is the biggest issue in the country, followed by inflation." - Rahul Gandhi

Modi govt silent on price rise... prices of petrol, diesel and daily essentials has reached record levels. Why? —Jairam Ramesh

“I challenge you (Modi) to contest elections on issues of employment, inflation, education, health and public issues - Priyanka Gandhi-Vadra