New Delhi: The Congress Party on Tuesday heavily criticized the Modi Government alleging that it has conspired to weaken the SC/ST Act at “the behest of the prime minister, the RSS and the BJP” and also alleged that the centre was spreading lies over the issue to fool the general public.

Anand Sharma, a senior Congress spokesperson, sought an apology to the country from BJP President Amit Shah for the government’s mis-deeds

He went on accusing the government for its ‘larger agenda’ to weaken the security net and legal protection allowed for members of Scheduled Castes and Tribes under the Act.

Mr Shama targeted Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad by accusing him of spreading lies over the issue by claiming the government was not a party to the SC/ST issue in court and sought an apology from him too.

He displayed Supreme Court orders which proved that the additional solicitor general had appeared on behalf of the Central Government during the hearing of the case and said that the Government was a party to the case before the court.

“The Modi government is conspiring to violate the rights of Dalits and tribals by speaking lies and falsehoods. The SC/ST Atrocities Act that was brought by the Congress and Rajiv Gandhi has almost been finished at the hands of the Modi Government and its Law Ministry,” Congress communications in-charge Randeep Surjewala said.

He added that while Mr Prasad had made a statement about the government not being a party to the case in the Supreme Court, on November 20, 2017, the Apex Court had issued a notice to the Central government along with the Maharashtra government and again on January 31, 2018, the additional solicitor general had made a representation of the centre and sought more time from the court on behalf of the Union government.

Mr Surjewala alleged that Mr Prasad was trying to mislead the country as part of a bigger conspiracy under “an agenda of lies and falsehood”.

“Was the government of India protecting the SC/ST Act or making it ineffective? The fact is that the Modi government and Law Ministry conspired to nullify the SC/ST Act under a conspiracy of lies, falsehood and deceit. And all this happened at the behest of the Prime Minister, the RSS and the BJP, who have an anti-Dalit and anti-tribal mindset,” he said.

Mr Sharma added that Mr Shah was attempting to portray himself as a champion of the philosophy of Dalit icon B R Ambedkar, but should instead offer apology to the country for what “his party’s government at the centre has done to the Dalits of India – for the atrocities, for the murders, for the rapes”.

“The BJP and RSS’s thinking militates against every aspect of the values and philosophy which Dr Ambedkar had propounded,” he said.

Mr Sharma said Mr Prasad spoke to the media on Monday about the government of India not being a party to the case before the Supreme Court.

“The Law Minister has made a factually incorrect statement. He should withdraw the statement and apologise for making a wrong statement.”

“It is a matter of concern that the Law Minister of India is either ignorant of the development that took place in the Supreme Court…The Law Minister was wrong in saying that the Union of India was not a party; they were very much a party,” he said.

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