Lok Sabha Election 2024: ‘Rajiv Gandhi abolished inheritance law to protect their family property’ says PM Modi

Prime Minister Narendra Modi asserted on Thursday that former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi annulled the inheritance law during his tenure to safeguard family wealth and property from government acquisition after the demise of his mother, Indira Gandhi.

Speaking at an election rally in Morena, Prime Minister Modi stated, “The details concerning Inheritance Tax are enlightening. When former PM Indira Gandhi passed away, her children were set to inherit her property. However, there existed a regulation that mandated a portion of the property be surrendered to the government before it could be inherited by the children. The Congress had devised a law regarding this. To prevent the property from falling into government hands, the then PM Rajiv Gandhi eliminated the inheritance law. After amassing wealth across four generations, they now aim to plunder your assets.”

Condemning the Karnataka government’s decision to classify the entire Muslim community in the state under the OBC category, the Prime Minister warned that the opposition party intends to implement this approach nationwide.

“The Congress government in Karnataka designated all members of the Muslim community in the state as OBC. Congress had already expanded the OBC category to include numerous new entrants, thereby depriving the existing OBCs of their educational and job reservation benefits,” PM Modi remarked.

He further highlighted Congress’ earlier attempts to divide OBC reservation on religious grounds, recalling a cabinet note from December 19, 2011, proposing to allocate a portion of the 27% OBC quota to a specific religion. However, this decision was challenged and ultimately rejected by both the Andhra Pradesh High Court and the Supreme Court.

In Madhya Pradesh, the Prime Minister cautioned, the Congress seeks to extend this model, thereby jeopardizing the reservations enjoyed by various communities like Yadavs, Khushwahas, and Gujjars.

Earlier, the National Commission for Backward Castes (NCBC) criticized the Karnataka government’s move to classify the entire Muslim community under the OBC category, deeming it unjust to the OBC community. Despite seeking clarification from the Karnataka government on the basis of this reservation, the NCBC chairman stated that they have not received a satisfactory response.