The Congress on Sunday objected to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s speech in Rajasthan in which the prime minister said the Congress would distribute the country’s wealth, if voted to power, to those who have more children. The Congress condemned the statement and said the prime minister through his ‘lies’ was again dividing Hindu-Muslims.

Calling Congress mindset ‘urban naxal’, Narendra Modi in Rajasthan’s Banswara said, “The Congress manifesto says they will calculate the gold with mothers and sisters, get information about it and then distribute that property. They will distribute it to whom – Manmohan Singh’s government had said that Muslims have the first right on the country’s assets.” The Congress said their manifesto has no such promise like this.

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi said the level of Narendra Modi’s lies has dropped after the first phase of voting.

“Congress earlier said Muslims had the first right in the country’s wealth. In their manifesto, the Congress said they will distribute the country’s property…to whom? Earlier, when their (Congress) government was in power, they had said that Muslims have the first right to the country’s assets. This means they will distribute the wealth among those who have more children, among infiltrators. Should your hard-earned money go to the infiltrators? Do you approve of this?” Modi said.

The reference to the earlier government was about a statement that former PM Manmohan Singh made in 2006. His comment at that time created a stir and the PMO issued a statement claiming that Manmohan Singh’s statement was misinterpreted – deliberately and mischievously. In his statement, Singh urged the states to “devise innovative plans to ensure that minorities, particularly the Muslim minority, are empowered to share equitable in the fruits of development”. After the row, the PMO said Manmohan Singh’s reference to first claim on resources referred to all priority areas including SCs, STs, OBCs, women and children and minorities.

It is this statement that became a flashpoint between the BJP and the Congress after Narendra Modi’s rally in Banswara.

Congress leader Pawan Khera said the Congress manifesto does not even have any mention of words like Hindu or Muslim. “We spoke about justice — justice for youth, tribals, workers, women … Thanks to the prime minister that people today are reading our manifesto to find out whether we have used any such divisive word…They are realising that Congress used no such words. Neither our manifesto nor our mind, Constitution, society has a place for such words,” Pawan Khera said.