Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday delivered a sharp criticism of the Congress, accusing the party of trying to divide the Other Backward Classes (OBCs) for electoral benefit. Speaking at a rally in Maharashtra’s Nanded, Modi alleged that Congress resents having an OBC Prime Minister who has worked to uplift all sections of society for the past decade.

“Congress can’t bear the fact that an OBC Prime Minister is bringing people together,” Modi remarked.

He accused the Congress of attempting to fragment the unified identity of the OBC community by dividing it into smaller caste groups, weakening its collective influence.

“Congress is playing a divisive game, trying to dismantle the OBC identity and split it into smaller caste groups. Congress wants to strip OBCs of their strong, unified identity. We must be alert to these divisive tactics and aware of their hidden agenda to weaken the country,” the Prime Minister stated. He urged, "Hum ek hai toh safe hai" (We are safe if we are united).

This message marked the second time in Maharashtra that Modi used the unity slogan. The previous day, while addressing a rally in Dhule, he warned that the Congress and its allies were attempting to sow division among castes and urged unity with the slogan, “Ek hai, toh safe hai.”

Modi also criticized the INDIA bloc at the Nanded rally, accusing it of showing blank books as the Constitution to provoke Dalits and Adivasis. He cautioned that Congress and its allies should not promote a “Pakistan agenda” or echo separatist language, asserting that such tactics would fail as long as he held the people’s trust.

Maharashtra’s single-phase election is scheduled for November 20, with votes counted on November 23.