Modi wrong to flag caste card at rallies: Mamata

Addressing a rally in Panihati, West Bengal, on Tuesday, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said BJP prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi was making a big mistake by flagging the caste card at his recent rallies.

She said Modi is playing divisive politics, which should be stopped immediately.

She was referring to Modi's demand to the Congress Party to stop insulting lower castes.

Addressing rallies in Domariyaganj and Maharajganj, Modi on Tuesday asked whether the Election Commission had the courage to act against people making casteist remarks against him.

Modi said leaders of the Congress Party have been consistently hurled casteist abuses at him, and that it was the duty of the Election Commission to rein them in with punitive measures.

Emphasizing that the toil of the lower castes was the primary reason for the comfortable living of the well-off, Modi said the latter had no business to insult the lower castes.

He said that it was not a crime to be born in a backward class family in India.

He said that "I might be from a backward or lower caste, but I don't play or promote a low brand or level of politics.This country has moved beyond caste and communal politics and its youth want development. Those living in palaces must realize that its due to the hard work of lower caste people like us that they are living comfortably."

He also said that there was no point or purpose in Hindus and Muslims fighting with each other, and urged both communities to fight a common problem-poverty.

On Modi stating at his recent rallies in the state and in the north east that Bangladeshi immigrants should be sent back to their homeland, Banerjee said: "Modi has no right say he will oust Bangladeshis from West Bengal. Who is he? He is nobody.I dare you(Modi) to touch them(Bangladeshis)."

Meanwhile in New Delhi, P.L.Punia, Chairman of the National Commission of Scheduled Castes, accused Modi of taking politics to a very low level.

He also said that Modi had no business to support yoga guru Baba Ramdev's controversial statement on Dalits and Rahul Gandhi, and demanded that the former apologise for endorsing Baba Ramdev's comments.