Congress twisted facts, distorted my statement on Ambedkar: Shah

New Delhi: Home Minister Amit Shah on Wednesday accused the Congress of twisting facts and distorting his comments on B R Ambedkar in the Rajya Sabha, asserting that it launched the malicious campaign after the discussion on Constitution “established” the Opposition party as being “anti-Ambedkar and anti-reservation”.

Addressing a press conference, Shah said the Congress was left with no answer following the discussion in Parliament. The party, he added, has adopted the tactic of misrepresenting and distorting statements, including those of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and then creating an uproar to mislead people.

He asserted that his address in the Rajya Sabha on Tuesday was clear and without any confusion, and is on the record of the House. He said he comes from a party and an ideology that can never insult the architect of the Constitution and his ideas, not “even in dreams”.

“What the Congress has done is extremely condemnable. Why did it happen? It happened because BJP leaders spoke on how the BJP governments have always upheld the Constitution and propagated its values. They established with facts that the Congress is anti-Ambedkar, anti-Constitution and anti-reservation,” Shah told reporters here.

Asked about Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge’s demand for his resignation, Shah said in a lighter vein that he will quit if this makes the Opposition leader happy but the fact is that it will not end his troubles. He has to remain in his seat, a reference to the Congress being in Opposition, for 15 more years, the minister said.

Referring to Kharge’s Dalit background as that of Ambedkar, Shah said the Congress president should not have been part of this malicious campaign involving India’s first law minister but had acted under “pressure” from Rahul Gandhi.

Asked if his comments have given the Opposition INDIA Bloc, which has been a divided house, an opportunity to join forces, he said parties often come together when a “wrong narrative” is floated but things change when people express their opinion.

He said that the people’s verdicts have frequently gone against the Opposition, prompting these parties to spread confusion to mislead the masses by sometimes blaming Electronic Voting Machines and at times living in delusion that they had won.

Shah’s press conference at the BJP headquarters capped a day of frenetic political moves from both sides on his comments, as the ruling party’s top rung leaders, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Cabinet colleagues, rallied to his defence after the Congress and other opposition parties launched a blistering attack on him.