Narendra Modi Slammed for Hate Speech After Muslim ‘Infiltrators’ Remark
HITTING BACK
India’s leading opposition party denounced Prime Minister Narendra Modi after he suggested they would redistribute earnings to Muslim “infiltrators” in a vitriolic campaign speech over the weekend. The Indian Congress Party filed an official complaint with the country’s election commission on Monday, accusing Modi of violating rules that prohibit candidates from instigating religious animosity. Modi, a staunch right-winger and Hindu nationalist, has long drawn controversy for demonizing India’s Muslim minority, and his comments at the Rajasthan rally on Sunday were taken as a foreboding sign for religious minorities if he wins a third term this year. He told the crowd that when the Congress Party was in power, “they said Muslims have the first right over the country’s resources,” and warned that if they return, they “will gather all your wealth and distribute it among those who have more children.” As the crowd cheered, Modi continued, “They will distribute it among infiltrators.”