Union home minister Amit Shah speaks during an election campaign rally in Lohardaga district of Jharkhand (AFP... Read More

RANCHI/ LOHARDAGA: Addressing his first election rally after the Supreme Court’s Ayodhya judgment, BJP president Amit Shah on Thursday accused Congress of blocking the construction of Ram temple by stalling the case while crediting Prime Minister Narendra Modi with “solving all problems pending in the country”.

Raking up the issue at his rallies in Manika and Lohardaga, he said: “Congress was repeatedly not allowing the case to be heard. Now, Supreme Court has delivered a historic verdict, paving the way for a grand temple on Ramjanmabhoomi touching the sky. Modiji is solving all the problems pending in the country one by one.”

Shah went on to remind people about the Modi government’s “historic” decision to revoke the special status given to Jammu and Kashmir by nullifying Articles 370 and 35A. “Congress allowed the Kashmir problem to continue for 70 years for its vote bank. The Modi government has wiped the blot off the crown of the country by abrogating these Articles,” he said.

In Lohardaga, Shah promised to set up a commission to review reservation for OBCs in Jharkhand if BJP is voted back to power with full majority. Shah’s promise is being seen as an attempt to woo OBCs, which are a vote bank of BJP’s estranged ally, Ajsu Party. OBCs get 14% reservations in the state but there is a demand to increase this to 27%. Ajsu Party, which has fielded candidates in 31 seats as it is unhappy with just seven seats it has got from BJP in the alliance, has already promised to hike reservations for OBCs to 27% in its manifesto.

Lohardaga, a seat reserved for STs, is one of the seats where the two allies are pitted against each other. BJP has fielded Congress turncoat and sitting MLA Sukhdeo Bhagat.



In Video: Amit Shah accuses Congress for delay in Ram temple case