"OBC not by birth, but on papers," alleges Rahul Gandhi about PM Modi's caste; BJP hits back

New Delhi [India], February 8 : Congress leader Rahul Gandhi sparked a controversy on Thursday, alleging that Prime Minister Narendra Modi does not belong to the Other Backward Caste (OBC) by birth but belongs to the general category.
Addressing a public rally during the Odisha leg of the Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra here, the Wayanad MP said, "Whenever BJP workers come to you, tell them one thing that our Prime Minister lied to the entire country that he belonged to the backward class. He was not born in a backward class. He belongs to the general caste. You tell this to every BJP worker."
This comes after Prime Minister Narendra Modi recently in Parliament called himself 'sabse bada OBC' (the biggest OBC) and accused the Congress of indulging in hypocrisy and adopting double standards while dealing with leaders of backward communities.
"Congress party and UPA government did not deliver justice to OBCs. A few days ago, Karpoori Thakur ji was conferred with Bharat Ratna. In 1970, when he became Bihar CM, what was not done to destabilise his government? Congress can't tolerate OBCs...They keep counting how many OBCs are in government. Can't you (Congress) see the biggest OBC here (pointing towards himself)?" PM Modi said in his reply to the 'Motion of Thanks' on the President's Address in Lok Sabha on Monday.
Meanwhile, Gandhi's remarks triggered sharp reactions from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders.
Party's IT cell head Amit Malviya took to 'X' and wrote, "PM Narendra Modi's caste was notified as an OBC on October 27, 1999, a full 2 years BEFORE he became the Chief Minister of Gujarat."
Malviya shared an official document listing OBC categories from Gujarat dated October 27, 1999, asserting that Modi's caste was officially recognised as OBC two years before he took over as the Chief Minister of Gujarat.
The BJP leader also claimed that the Nehru-Gandhi family, right from Jawaharlal Nehru to Rahul Gandhi, has consistently been opposed to OBCs.
"The entire Nehru-Gandhi family, starting from Jawaharlal Nehru to Rahul Gandhi, has been against OBCs," he added.
However, Rahul Gandhi rubbished the remarks stating that the Prime Minister belongs to the OBC only 'on papers'.
Taking to 'X', Gandhi wrote, "Modiji (PM Narendra Modi) is not by birth, but an OBC only on papers. He was not an OBC until five decades after his birth. Thanks to the BJP government for confirming this truth of mine."
Meanwhile, BJP leader Purnesh Modi also condemned the remarks and said that the Congress leader is saying so because he is 'frustrated'.
"I strongly condemn and protest against the remarks of Rahul Gandhi. The country is now united with Prime Minister Narendra Modiji's efforts through the mantra of 'Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas, Sabka Prayas, and Sabka Vishwas'," Modi said while speaking to ANI.
"The Congress is in the habit of spreading lies and engaging in vote-bank and appeasement politics. Rahul Gandhi is frustrated. The Prime Minister has increased the sense of pride in every citizen on a global level. He does politics, keeping aside caste and religion," he added.
The BJP leader further added that the Teli community (to which PM Modi belongs) was included in the OBC category in 1994 during the Congress rule in Gujarat.
"On July 25, 1994, during Congress rule, the Gujarat government issued a circular. It is a lie that the 'Teli' community was included in the OBC category in 2000... They were included in the OBC category in 1994 during the Congress rule. When PM Modi was the CM of Gujarat, he had nothing to do with including the 'Teli' community in OBC," Purnesh Modi said.
Meanwhile, BJP leader and Rajya Sabha member Narhari Amin said that Rahul Gandhi is insulting the OBC community by cooking up 'mindless' lies.
Taking to 'X', Narhari Amin, former Congress leader, said, "I was serving as the Deputy Chief Minister of Gujarat in the Congress Government when GoG notified Modh-Ghanchi as OBC on 25th July 1994. This is the same caste our respected Prime Minister Shri @narendramodi belongs to. Mr. @RahulGandhi is insulting the OBC communities by cooking up mindless lies on this issue. This decision, and the subsequent GoI notification came when Shri @narendramodi was not even MP/MLA forget being CM."
The BJP leader further demanded that Rahul Gandhi withdraw his claims.
"I demand Shri @RahulGandhi immediately withdraw his lies. He should stop defaming OBCs and also apologise to the people of Gujarat for being filled with hate towards our popular Prime Minister Shri @narendramodi," he said.
In response to Gandhi's remarks, Union Minister Anurag Thakur said that the Congress never skips a chance to insult PM Modi.
"Congress never skips a chance to insult PM Modi...now they have even questioned his caste, but their own former Gujarat Dy CM Narhari Amin has given the answer, that on July 25, 1994, during Congress rule in Gujarat, they gave OBC status to Modh and Ghanchi communities. This itself shows that Rahul Gandhi is a liar; he has the habit of lying. Now there is a competition between Arvind Kejriwal and Rahul Gandhi over who will lie the most. To be in the headlines, they keep making such statements," Thakur said while speaking to the reporters.
The Other Backward Class, or the OBCs, represent 52% of the total population of the country, according to the report of the Mandal Commission published in 1980.
The Congress party, along with its allies in the INDIA bloc, also demanded a caste census.
However, the ruling BJP has been standing against the caste census claiming that it would create a division in society.