Bhopal: The Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh on Tuesday criticised the congress party and accused them of neglecting Bharat Ratna Babasaheb B.R. Ambedkar and raising his legacy now purely for vote-bank politics.
The Chief Minister Mohan Yadav alleged that whenever the Congress was in power, it prioritised building memorials and launching schemes solely in the name of one family.
Yadav in a press conference told reporters that it is unfortunate that Babasaheb, who always championed the rights of marginalised sections of society, faced opposition from India’s first Prime Minister, Jawaharlal Nehru. The Congress has always exhibited a dual character. Ambedkar himself stated that he was primarily an expert in finance and industry, yet he was never assigned work in these fields.
He also said that it is astonishing that Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru awarded himself the Bharat Ratna while still alive. Later, Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi were also conferred the Bharat Ratna. Babasaheb, however, was only honoured with the Bharat Ratna in 1990, many years later.
The Chief Minister also remarked that while Ambedkar Jayanti is celebrated nationwide, the Congress National President has never visited Ambedkar’s birthplace, Mhow, located in Indore district, on either his birth or death anniversaries.
“During one of the Congress’ yatras that passed through Madhya Pradesh, they stayed in Mhow. If the Congress lacks the genuine sentiment to visit his birthplace, what kind of devotion is this? While in power, the Congress consistently focused on memorials and schemes honouring one family but failed to respect B.R. Ambedkar. The party has followed this pattern in the past and is now attempting to use Ambedkar’s legacy to appease its vote bank,” Yadav stated.