Team Clarion
NEW DELHI — BJP’s National General Secretary CT Ravi on Wednesday, said there are many “patriots among Muslims” who vote for BJP, but the party doesn’t want any vote from the people having “Pakistani mindset.”
CT Ravi was apparently giving clarification on senior BJP leader KS Eshwarappa’s controversial statement he gave recently that BJP does not need Muslim votes.
Former Karnataka minister K S Eshwarappa on Monday asserted that the saffron party didn’t need Muslim votes in Shivamogga city in the upcoming Karnataka Assembly elections scheduled on May 10, and went on to say that nationalist Muslims would vote for the party anyway.
ANI quoted CT Ravi as saying, “there are many patriots among Muslims who vote for BJP. But some of them who support Pakistan and have divisive ideology vote for Congress and Janata Dal. We don’t want the votes of those who have a Pakistani mindset.”
“People who are like Abdul Kalam and Shishunala Sharifa vote for BJP. We bring government schemes keeping ‘sabka saath, sabka vikas’ in mind and not on the basis of caste-like former CM Siddaramaiah did earlier. He brought many of the government schemes for Muslims only,” he added further.
CT Ravi further claimed that where Rahul Gandhi campaigns, Congress loses, says the report.
“Rahul Gandhi campaigned in UP and Congress lost there. But wherever PM Modi campaigns, BJP wins and it will continue to win.”
Eshwarappa, who announced his decision to step away from electoral politics earlier, said CT Ravi is a “good leader” but a decision on the CM’s face is outside his domain.
He added that he doesn’t have the authority to decide the party’s chief ministerial candidate.
“CT Ravi is a good leader. He is doing very good work in Chikkamagaluru. I did not say anything about him being the next chief minister. I have no authority to make such a statement,” Eshwarappa told ANI over the phone on Tuesday.
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Image tweeted by CT Ravi
