BJP's 400-plus slogan is `preparation to murder Constitution' Shiv Sena UBT mouthpiece

Pune, Mar 12 (PTI) Shiv Sena (UBT) mouthpiece 'Saamana' on Tuesday said the Bharatiya Janata Party's slogan about winning more than 400 Lok Sabha seats was a "preparation to murder the Indian Constitution."
Referring to BJP MP Anankumar Hegde's controversial statement that a bigger majority than the present one was needed if the Constitution was to be amended, the editorial said it proved correct the fear that the 2024 general elections will be the last elections.
"People around Prime Minister Narendra Modi always talk about destroying the existing Constitution and writing a new constitution in the Modi era," it claimed.
The Constitution is the shield and support of Indian democracy, the newspaper said, adding, "400 assailants are being prepared....The BJP's slogan of '400-paar' (crossing 400) is actually a preparation to murder the Constitution."
When Modi came out with this slogan, it seemed he needed this kind of majority for nation-building, development and welfare of the masses, but Hegde's comments exposed the intent behind it, the editorial stated.
Citing the example of dictators from the past like Adolf Hitler, Benito Mussolini, Idi Amin and the present President of Russia, Vladimir Putin, the editorial said these leaders changed constitutions and made themselves lifelong presidents. "Does the BJP want to make Modi 'badshah' (emperor) of India like Putin?" the Sena (UBT) mouthpiece asked.
The editorial also claimed that Modi seemed to be haunted by "inferiority complex", and asserted that the country will not forgive those who would change the Constitution and enjoy power.
Elsewhere, Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray too claimed on Tuesday that the BJP, his former ally, wanted to win more than 400 seats not for development but for changing the Constitution.
Once the Constitution is changed, "they will take all the powers in their hands in such a way that no elections would take place in the country again," Thackeray claimed at a rally in eastern Maharashtra's Yavatmal.

(This story has not been edited by THE WEEK and is auto-generated from PTI)