Nationalism Is Our Strength, Focus On Pro-Poor Agenda: PM Modi To BJP

New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday told nearly 400 top leaders of his party, the BJP, that they must focus on spreading the message about the pro-poor agenda of the NDA government among the deprived sections to counter the perceptions being built against the BJP among those sections.

"Create an image of the party and government in the hearts of the poorest of poor. Emerge not just as a political force by winning polls but also as a social force," PM Modi told his party colleagues.

Mr Modi's comments underline the worry in the BJP over the list of atrocities against Dalits in the recent past which have been leveraged by the opposition to claim that the BJP has failed in protecting the vulnerable caste's most basic rights.

Early in July, four young Dalit men were stripped, tied to a car and thrashed, in the village of Una in Gujarat, which is governed by the BJP. The victims had been wrongly accused of cow slaughter by cow vigilantes. A few weeks ago, the PM warned that violence by cow protection squads would not be tolerated.

Mr Modi also told the BJP's top leaders from each state that they must urgently combat allegations of the party failing to stand for and protect weaker sections of society. "80 per cent of party workers are not from a privileged background... Don't let the misinformation succeed," the PM told his team, claiming that when the BJP speaks of the poor and reaches out to them, "our opponents get rattled."

PM Modi also asked the leaders not to worry over the issue of nationalism. Describing it as "the bed rock of our ideology" the PM emphasised that nationalism was the BJP's strength. He said that there was an attempt to damage the social fabric of the country and the recent Tiranga Yatras (marches with national flags undertaken by BJP leaders across the country to mark the 70th year of Independence) have succeeded in stringing together all sections of the society.

His comments come at a time when the BJP is being accused by critics of promoting aggressive patriotism and hyper-nationalism and of seeking to quell dissent especially at universities.

Today's meeting of BJP's core group leaders from all states was attended by top union ministers and was devised by BJP president Amit Shah who was reportedly worried about the lack of ideas and initiatives in party branches in the states and the ad hoc mechanism of decision making.