"When in power...Snatch away rights of Dalits": BJP's Pradeep Bhandari attacks Congress over Nitin Raut's viral video

New Delhi [India], November 17 (ANI): Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) national spokesperson Pradeep Bhandari on Sunday alleged that Congress will snatch away the rights of Dalits and give them to Muslim voters if voted to power in Maharashtra after a viral video came to fore where senior Congress leader Nitin Raut purportedly claiming that he was dropped from the Vilas Rao Deshmukh cabinet for greeting the CM with 'Jai Bheem'.
The viral clip of Senior Congress leader Nitin Raut has given the BJP ammunition to attack the party as Anti-Dalit.
"Congress party is Anti-Dalits. When Vilasrao Deshmukh was the Chief Minister of Maharashtra, they had a problem with the slogan "Jai Bhim". Rahul Gandhi carries a blank copy of the Constitution and wants to destroy the Constitution of Babasaheb Ambedkar. He wants to divide the Dalits and unite the Muslim vote bank. The constitution of Babasaheb Ambedkar was not implemented in J&K for 70 years and Bharat Ratna was not conferred on Babasaheb Ambedkar by the Congress party. Baba Saheb's statue was not placed in the central hall," BJP national spokesperson Pradeep Bhandaritold ANI.
"If the Congress will come into power in Maharashtra, they will snatch away the rights of Dalits and give it to Muslim voters," he added.
Earlier, BJP National Spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla took to X and attacked Congress on the instance and called them Anti-Dalit and Anti-Ambedkar DNA.
"Senior leader Nitin Raut discloses that he was dropped as a minister from Vilas Rao Deshmukh cabinet only because he greeted him & Congress leaders with "Jai Bheem" slogan Congress has an Anti Dalit and Anti Ambedkar DNA !" the post read.
Additionally, Poonawalla also posted a self-recorded video in the post where he attacked Rahul Gandhi and said that he wanted to end the elections, and said, "Rahul Gandhi said he would end elections. Even Nehru wanted to end elections. Between 80-90, Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi stood against the Election Commission. They made Ambedkar contest for elections twice. All these instances have always proved that Congress is Anti-Dalit. When will they tell us that their own motive is to insult the Dalits. The Congress is against election, Dalits, and Ambedkar."
Maharashtra BJP women's wing chief Chitra Kishor Wagh also posted the video on X saying that the original face of Congress was anti-reservation, anti-backward class and only appeased the Muslims.
Notably, The Maharashtra assembly elections are scheduled for November 20, with votes for all 288 constituencies to be counted on November 23.
The opposition MVA coalition, comprising Congress, Shiv Sena (UBT), and the Nationalist Congress Party (SCP), seeks to reclaim power in the state, challenging the Mahayuti alliance, which includes Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), and Ajit Pawar-led NCP. (ANI)