Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday hailed the Maharashtra verdict as an endorsement of his “ek hai toh safe hai” (together, we are safe) call for unity, and a defeat of “those who sought to divide on caste, religion, language and region” lines.

Addressing party workers at the BJP office in the evening, he said: “After Haryana, the message of Maharashtra is also unity. ‘Ek hai toh safe hai’ has become the great mantra of India. The Congress and its ecosystem thought that by lying about the Constitution and reservation, they would divide the SCs, STs and OBCs. Maharashtra defeated this agenda… Maharashtra has said in one voice that ‘ek hai toh safe hai’. Those who sought to divide on caste, religion, language and region have been punished.”

Saying that the Maharashtra verdict was a vote for stability and development, he said the Opposition INDIA bloc did not understand that the people’s thought process had changed. “They don’t want to accept the truth and they underestimate the intelligence of voters. The voters don’t want instability, they want nation-first… they don’t like those who dream of kursi-first,” he said.