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The 108th episode of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's monthly radio address, 'Mann Ki Baat, drew a cross-section of audience on Sunday, with women from the Muslim community turning out in numbers for a special broadcast at Mahila Park near the iconic Jama Masjid of Old Delhi.
The special broadcast, organised by the Indian Minorities Foundation, an NGO, cones at a time when the BJP has been making a conscious effort to reach out to all communities, beyond its core voters, with an eye on next year's Lok Sabha elections. The broadcast drew Muslim participants from diverse age groups, especially women. The 'Mann Ki Baat' is a platform for PM Modi to communicate directly with the people. He has been using the forum to raise issues of national importance with the people while exhorting them to be stakeholders in the pursuit of a 'developed nation' in the coming years. Giving her take on PM Modi's radio address to ANI on Sunday, one of the attendees at the broadcast, Shabana Rehman, said, "We all have gathered here to listen to PM Modi's 'Mann Ki Baat.' All of us support PM Modi." Calling PM Modi 'bhaijaan', Rehman underlined his efforts to reach out to a cross-section of communities. "No other party or government did as much for us as this government. Be it 'triple talaq' or extending the benefits of the government's social welfare schemes, PM Modi has done a lot for us. He is our 'bhaijaan'," she told ANI. Another attendee at the special broadcast, Nawab Qureshi, said he is a regular follower of PM Modi's 'Mann Ki Baat' address. He also voiced his contentment over the strides that the Muslim community, especially women, has made under the leadership of PM Modi. "I listen to PM Modi's 'Mann Ki Baat' every last Sunday of the month. Our country is moving on the road to development at a rapid speed," he said. "In the last nine-and-a-half years, under the leadership of PM Modi, Muslims in the country have made progress and are happy," Qureshi added. Earlier, in a significant move marking the positive impact of PM Modi's outreach to the minorities, a former litigant in the Ayodhya land dispute case, Iqbal Ansari, was seen showering petals on PM Modi's motorcade during his roadshow in the temple town on Saturday. PM Modi received a grand welcome in Ayodhya, with a huge number of locals cheering, waving and showering petals on his motorcade. However, Iqbal Ansari's presence as a cheerleader stood out among the teeming thousands that turned out to welcome PM Modi. (ANI)
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