Narendra Modi breaks silence on NRC row, condemns incidents of lynching and crimes against women

In an interview to ANI, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday addressed the issue of the National Register of Citizens (NRC) and said that ’no citizen of India will have to leave the country.’ Modi also took a dig at West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee for her remarks against the final draft of the Assam NRC. “Those who have lost faith in themselves, fear loss of popular support and lack faith in our institutions can use words like ‘civil war’,‘blood bath’ and ‘desh ke tukde tukde.’ Evidently, they are disconnected from the pulse of the nation,” ANI quoted him as saying. [caption id=“attachment_4920801” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] File image of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Reuters[/caption] “I want to assure the people that no citizen of India will have to leave the country. As per the due process, all possible opportunities will be given to get their concerns addressed,” the prime minister also said. The NRC revision has rocked Assam since the publication of its final draft on 30 July. Names of over 40 lakh people have been excluded from the draft NRC, which is touted to be a proof of Assamese identity. Modi also spoke on the various incidents of crimes against women and incidents of lynching. “Even a single incident is one too many and deeply unfortunate. Everyone should rise above politics to ensure peace and unity in our society,” he said in the interview to ANI. On the Opposition’s accusation that he was silent over such incidents, Modi said, “My party and I have spoken in clear words, on multiple occasions against such actions and such a mindset. It is all on record.” On the issue of the no-confidence motion during the monsoon session and the rift between BJP and its allies, Modi said that “the no-confidence motion in the Lok Sabha and the election for the deputy chairperson of the Rajya Sabha” were two events which were enough to provide answers on this issue. “The outcome of these events should indicate which coalition is intact and which is falling apart. In fact, we got support even from those parties which are not our allies. BJP has consistently expanded (its) base over (the) recent years among people and welcomed more allies to NDA,” he said. On Rahul Gandhi hugging him in Lok Sabha, Modi said, “It is for you to judge whether it was a childish act or not. And if you are unable to decide, watch the wink and you will get the answer.” Modi also assured people that ‘reservation is here to stay’ when asked about whether the government was planning to do away with caste-based reservations. The prime minister also spoke on BJP pulling out of its alliance with PDP in Jammu and Kashmir. “After the sad demise of Mufti sahab, there were hurdles in fulfilling those (people’s) expectations, that is why, without casting any aspersions, we opted out of power,” ANI quoted him as saying.