NEW DELHI: Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis on Sunday alleged that Bangladeshi migrants were obtaining documents illegally in the state and termed it “vote jihad part 2.”
“Bangladeshi infiltrators are seeking birth certificates in Maharashtra as part of vote jihad part 2. Nearly 100 such cases have been reported in Amravati and Malegaon tehsil in Nashik. These people, many aged around 50 years, are obtaining documents illegally,” he said.
The CM firmly declared that no infiltrator would be allowed to remain in Maharashtra. He said that his government was committed to tackling anarchist forces seeking to incite caste-based and communal divisions and called on the public to remain vigilant and support this mission.
During the November assembly election campaign, Fadnavis had referred to instances where a particular community had overwhelmingly voted against the BJP in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, labeling this behavior as “vote jihad.” He had been called out by NCP (SCP) leader Sharad Pawar who had said that he coined the term “vote jihad” after observing that, in certain constituencies, members of the minority community voted for the Maha Vikas Aghadi in the Lok Sabha elections.
Fadnavis further reflected upon BJP’s performance in assembly elections, and praised Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union home minister Amit Shah for their leadership and for boosting the confidence of party workers following the challenges faced in the Lok Sabha polls.
“In the last 30 years in Maharashtra, the BJP is the only party which crossed the 100-seat mark in three consecutive polls (2014, 2019 and 2024). PM Modi’s leadership gave us confidence and BJP got 132 seats with strike rate of 89 per cent,” he said.
Fadnavis was speaking at the state BJP’s convention in Shirdi in Ahilyanagar.
