BJP workers must gear up to fight ‘fake narratives’: Maharashtra CM Devendra Fadnavis

Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Monday accused the Congress of drawing inspiration from Maoism and using what he described as false narratives to create an atmosphere of anarchy in the countryAddressing the concluding session of the BJP State Executive Committee meeting in Pune Fadnavis urged party workers to prepare for what he described as an upcoming political battle against misinformation and fake narrativesHe alleged that opposition parties particularly the Congress were attempting to spread false claims on a range of political and social issuesFadnavis targets Opposition over school curriculum changesFadnavis cited the Oppositions criticism of changes to school textbooks saying allegations of saffronisation were raised when the government sought to include what he described as historical facts in the curriculumHe referred to the treatment of Mughal and Maratha history in NCERT textbooks under previous governmentsOur true history was hidden from us for decades The Modi government rectified this by reducing the Mughals to a single paragraph and allocating 17 pages to Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj and Maratha history shattering their fake narrative he saidFadnavis argued that the dispute over the curriculum was part of a broader political effort by the Opposition to challenge the BJPs version of historical and cultural issuesCM says Opposition now targeting Kumbh Mela over alleged corruptionTurning to preparations for the upcoming Kumbh Mela Fadnavis alleged that the Opposition had begun raising corruption allegations even before the eventHe said tenders for Kumbh Melarelated works had been received at rates between 20 and 30 per cent below the estimated costs resulting in savings of more than Rs 100 crore in individual contractsldquoWe are conducting audits in four distinct stages The Oppositionrsquos sole strategy is to lie repeatedly and blatantlyrdquo he addedFadnavis said the government was putting in place multiple levels of scrutiny for expenditure related to the eventFadnavis invokes Ambedkar while warning against anarchyThe chief minister referred to Bharat Ratna B R Ambedkars final speech and said Ambedkar had warned the country about the dangers of anarchyFadnavis alleged that similar threats were now being created under the guise of defending the ConstitutionldquoThis is targeted not just against the BJP but against society at large The Opposition invokes the Constitution while trampling upon its core values to instigate chaos However anyone attempting to misuse the Constitution will end up burning their own handsrdquo he saidHe also claimed that India was facing pressure from forces that did not want the country to progress towards greater selfrelianceldquoThese forces know that if India is not stopped now it cannot be stopped later Only around 5 per cent of the people working with them realise they are being used while 95 per cent remain unawarerdquo he saidCongress accused of promoting Maoist ideologyFadnavis also accused the Congress of hypocrisy over its position on the ConstitutionHe said the party had in the past amended the Constitution to place certain decisions beyond judicial scrutiny while now presenting itself as a defender of constitutional valuesldquoThe cover says lsquoConstitutionrsquo but inside lies a red book of Maoism Leader of the Opposition LoP in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi speaks of Chhatro Ki Goonj Voice of Students but in reality it is nothing more than Jhooth Ki Goonj Echo of Liesrdquo he remarkedHe also criticised Sonia Gandhi alleging that she had stopped Vande Mataram during a public eventFadnavis described the song as a major symbol of national sentiment and referred to its association with Indias freedom movementChief minister raises womens reservation and development targetsOn womens empowerment Fadnavis accused Rahul Gandhi and parties that were part of the former United Progressive Alliance of delaying the passage of the Womens Reservation BillldquoI have complete faith in my leader Once Prime Minister Narendra Modi resolves to achieve something he delivers Defying all odds PM Modi will ensure the implementation of womenrsquos reservation by 2029rdquo he saidFadnavis said the BJPled government was working towards the goal of making India a developed nation by 2047 under Prime Minister Narendra Modis leadershipHe also set out an ambitious economic target for Maharashtra saying the state aimed to become a USD 3 trillion economy by 2030Expressing confidence in the Mahayuti government Fadnavis said the ruling alliance would work to overcome challenges and meet the states development targetsWith inputs from IANS