No Muslim quota even if your 4th generation comes: Amit Shah to Rahul Gandhi
Dhule (PTI): Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Wednesday said Congress leader Rahul Gandhi should remember that even if his “fourth generation were to come”, Muslims won’t get reservations meant for SCs, STs and OBCs.
“A few days ago, Ulemas met the president of Congress party and said that Muslims should be given reservation,” Shah said, addressing a rally for the November 20 Maharashtra assembly elections.
“If reservation has to be given to Muslims, then reservation for SCs, STs and OBCs will have to be cut. Rahul Baba, not only you but even if your four generations were to come, they cannot cut the quota meant for SCs, STs and OBCs and give it to Muslims,” Shah said.
Shah also said Article 370 won’t be restored, come what may. “Even if Indira Gandhi were to return from heaven, Article 370 won’t be restored,” Shah said.
On Congress leader Sushilkumar Shinde’s statement that he was scared during his visit to Srinagar’s Lal Chowk when he was the Union home minister, Shah said, “Shinde ji, go to Kashmir now along with your grandkids, no harm will come to you.”
“During 10 years of the Sonia-Manmohan regime, terrorists used to come freely from Pakistan and trigger bomb blasts here,” Shah said.
Describing the opposition’s Maha Vikas Aghadi grouping in Maharashtra as Aurangzeb Fan Club, Shah said the BJP-led Mahayuti alliance abides by the ideals of Shivaji Maharaj and Veer Savarkar.
“This MVA alliance only wants to appease and Uddhav ji has forgotten the principles of Balasaheb Thackeray for the sake of power,” Shah said.
“Uddhav Babu, you are sitting with those who opposed renaming Aurangabad as Sambhajinagar, who opposed the construction of Ram temple, who opposed the abolition of triple talaq, who opposed the abolition of Article 370, who opposed the surgical strikes and who call Hindus terrorists,” Shah said.
“I have travelled all over Maharashtra and can say with confidence that Mahayuti will sweep the November 20 assembly polls,” he said.
“The ‘ladli behnas’ (women) of Maharashtra are with the lotus flower and the BJP,” Shah said. The Mahayuti will form the next government in Maharashtra with the highest ever number of seats, he added.
The Maha Vikas Aghadi leaders are opposing all the communities, Shah said.
“They gave a statement against (Hindu seer) Ramgiri Maharaj. They caused riots in Sindkheda and they are promoting such people who are not good for Maharashtra and the country,” he added.
“People in this country are troubled by the Waqf law. Recently, the Waqf Board in Karnataka decided that entire villages are Waqf property. 400-year-old temples, farmers' land and people's houses became Waqf property.
“We have brought a bill to amend the Waqf Act, but Rahul Baba and Pawar Sahab are opposing the bill. Rahul Gandhi, listen, PM Modi will definitely amend the Waqf Act,” Shah said.
Shah said Manmohan Singh left India's economy at 11th position and PM Modi took it to fifth position within 10 years. “I promise you that by 2027, India's economy will be the third largest economy in the world,” he said.
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Cong takes swipe at PM over India not being part of US-led 'Pax Silica' grouping
New Delh (PTI) The Congress on Saturday said it is perhaps not very surprising that India is not part of a US-led strategic initiative to build a secure silicon supply chain, given the "sharp downturn" in the Trump-Modi ties, and asserted that it would have been to "our advantage if we had been part of this group".
Congress general secretary in charge of communications Jairam Ramesh took a swipe at Prime Minister Narendra Modi, saying the news of India not being part of the group comes after the PM had enthusiastically posted on social media about a telephone call with his "once-upon-a-time good friend and a recipient of many hugs in Ahmedabad, Houston, and Washington DC".
In a lengthy post on X, Ramesh said, "According to some news reports, the US has excluded India from a nine-nation initiative it has launched to reduce Chinese control on high-tech supply chains. The agreement is called Pax Silica, clearly as a counter to Pax Sinica. The nations included (for the moment at least) are the US, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Singapore, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Israel, the United Arab Emirates, and Australia."
"Given the sharp downturn in the Trump-Modi ties since May 10th, 2025, it is perhaps not very surprising that India has not been included. Undoubtedly, it would have been to our advantage if we had been part of this group."
"This news comes a day after the PM had enthusiastically posted on his telephone call with his once-upon-a-time good friend and a recipient of many hugs in Ahmedabad, Houston, and Washington DC," the Congress leader asserted.
The new US-led strategic initiative, rooted in deep cooperation with trusted allies, has been launched to build a secure and innovation-driven silicon supply chain.
According to the US State Department, the initiative called 'Pax Silica' aims to reduce coercive dependencies, protect the materials and capabilities foundational to artificial intelligence (AI), and ensure aligned nations can develop and deploy transformative technologies at scale.
The initiative includes Japan, South Korea, Singapore, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Israel, the United Arab Emirates, and Australia. With the exception of India, all other QUAD countries -- Japan, Australia and the US -- are part of the new initiative.
New Delhi will host the India-AI Impact Summit 2026 on February 19-20, focusing on the principles of 'People, Planet, and Progress'. The summit, announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the France AI Action Summit, will be the first-ever global AI summit hosted in the Global South.
Prime Minister Modi and US President Trump on Thursday discussed ways to sustain momentum in the bilateral economic partnership in a phone conversation amid signs of the two sides inching closer to firming up a much-awaited trade deal.
The phone call between the two leaders came on a day Indian and American negotiators concluded two-day talks on the proposed bilateral trade agreement that is expected to provide relief to India from the Trump administration's whopping 50 per cent tariffs on Indian goods.
In a social media post, Modi had described the conversation as "warm and engaging".
"We reviewed the progress in our bilateral relations and discussed regional and international developments. India and the US will continue to work together for global peace, stability and prosperity," Modi had said without making any reference to trade ties.
