PM Modi Tells Reason Behind 400-Seat Goal: 'Don't Want Congress To Put Babri Lock...'

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has said he wants the BJP-led NDA to win 400 seats in the ongoing Lok Sabha polls to prevent the Congress from bringing back Article 370 in Kashmir and putting a "Babri lock" on the Ram temple in Ayodhya.

Addressing a rally at Dhar in Madhya Pradesh, Modi slammed RJD president Lalu Prasad's statement favouring reservation benefits to Muslims, saying the opposition INDIA bloc's "conspiracy" is deeper.

"The truth is that the Congress parivar deeply hates Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar," Modi said, accusing the Congress of belittling the Dalit icon. "They have started saying he had a very little role in framing the Constitution."

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Modi said the Congress is spreading rumours that if he gets 400 Lok Sabha seats, he will change the Constitution. 

"It is important for the people of the country to know that the BJP-led NDA already has 400-plus seats in Parliament. We used this number to scrap Article 370 (which provided special status to Jammu and Kashmir)," Modi said.

“Modi wants 400 seats so that the Congress won’t bring back Article 370 to spoil the game, Modi wants 400 seats so that the Congress won’t put a Babri lock on the Ram temple in Ayodhya,” he said.

The PM said that about 14 days back, he challenged the Congress to give in writing to the country's 140 crore people that it will not give reservation on the basis of religion. "Secondly, I asked them to give in writing that they will never snatch reservation being given to SCs, STs and OBC and thirdly, to give in writing that they will never give reservation to Muslims by committing dacoity from the existing OBC quota, but they are not responding and sitting silently by putting a lock on their mouths,” he said.

The PM said he wants 400 Lok Sabha seats to prevent Congress from "dacoity" of the OBC quota to benefit its vote bank. “We have also used these 400 plus seats to extend SC/ST quota for 10 years, appoint a tribal woman as the country’s President for the first time and to provide reservation to women,” Modi said.

He added that Ambedkar had opposed religion-based reservation. "Should such people be kept away from politics forever or not? This will be the biggest tribute to BR Ambedkar," Modi said. 

When Congress was out of power, Ambedkar was given the Bharat Ratna, he added. "The Congress has started saying that he (Ambedkar) had a very little role in framing the Constitution and Pandit Nehru made the most significant contribution in the making of the Constitution," Modi said.

The Congress and other India Bloc parties have alleged that the BJP's "400 paar" slogan suggests that they want to change the Constitution.

"The Congress party and INDIA bloc are trying to protect democracy and Constitution while Modi, BJP and RSS want to destroy it," Congress leader Rahul Gandhi said.

(With PTI Inputs)