Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Saturday said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has taught such a lesson to rioters in 2002 — when he was the chief minister of Gujarat — that till date, no one has dared to take part in riots again in the state.
Speaking at the Viksit Bharat Sankalp Yatra at Sanand in Ahmedabad district, Shah also gave credit to Modi for the abrogation of Article 370 “in a jiffy” and building a temple for Lord Ram, who was otherwise housed in a “tent”.
“In 2002, there were riots, then Modi saheb taught (the rioters) a lesson… Tell me, have there been riots after that? The rioters were taught such a lesson in 2002 that to date no one dares to cause riots in Gujarat,” he said at the event held at the Sanand gram panchayat.
“In Kashmir, the dream of Sardar Patel, Syama Prasad Mookerjee to remove Article 370 was fulfilled in a jiffy (snapping his fingers) by Modi saheb… For 550 years, our own country’s Lord Ram was living in a tent, a temple could not be built. Narendrabhai completed the work of making a temple.”
Praising Modi for “teaching Pakistan a lesson”, he said, “Earlier, every day, we would have bomb blasts… print journalists would forget to print, there would be so many blasts. But with a surgical and air strike once, we taught Pakistan a lesson… Narendrabhai has made the country safer.”
Crediting Modi for the successful landing of Chandrayaan-3 on the Moon, Shah said: “The entire world reached the Moon but our flag could not. Narendrabhai sent Chandrayaan to the Moon and made our Tricolour fly high Shiv Shakti point (landing site of Chandrayaan).”
“He (PM) has worked in such a way that all parameters in the country’s economy are at their best (now when compared to) the last 75 years. If one takes 10-year intervals… (the country has seen the most) industrial development during Narendrabhai’s tenure…,” he added.
Praising the PM for providing people with free Covid-19 vaccine, Shah asked the crowd, “Tell me you all, did any one of you have to spend even 5 paisa… not a rupee, I am saying 5 paisa – which is not even available now – for vaccination? Instead, you were given a cup of coffee and the vaccination certificate came on your WhatsApp with a smiling face of Narendrabhai.”
“It is time to fulfil the dream of martyrs like Bhagat Singh, Khudiram Bose, Rani Laxmibai, who fought for our Independence to make India number one in the world,” he said while calling on the youth to work towards the same. On the occasion, Shah took a pledge to make India a developed country by 2047 and remove “slavery mentality from its root”.
Later, speaking at the 66th convocation of Sardar Patel University in Anand district’s Vallabh Vidyanagar, Shah addressed the students as “the first batch of the Amrit Kaal era”.
He said that it was after “joining national politics and travelling” that he “truly understood” the stature of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel. “At first, when I used to work in Gujarat – born and brought up here – I respected Sardar Patel as every other Gujarati. But when I joined national politics after 2012 and started travelling across the country, I realised that had it not been for Sardar Patel, the unification of India would have been impossible and it would have no naksha (map)…”
“Today, I publicly admit that after travelling to Northeast, Kashmir, Hyderabad and Jodhpur, and witnessing the adoration people have for Sardar Patel, my opinion changed. Jodhpur, Junagadh, Hyderabad and Lakshadweep are a part of India today only because of Sardar Patel… When Modiji decided to abrogate Article 370 and when I studied the historical papers during that time, I learnt that Sardar Patel had accepted the decision to impose Article 370 in Kashmir with deep anguish and heartache,” he said.
“One Gujarati, Narendrabhai (Modi), has made Sardar Patel’s wish come true,” Shah added.
According to Shah, it was due to Sardar Patel that India stood “protected and rehabilitated”, contrary to the world opinion that India would “disintegrate and be violated” after the end of the British rule.
“…While leaving India, the British decided that the princely states were free to remain independent or join India or Pakistan as they liked. The entire world thought India would disintegrate and be violated but they did not know that there was Sardar Patel here… If you meet the people who suffered the difficulties of Partition, you will know who Sardar Patel is.”
“Rich businessmen became paupers and refugees in their own countries… If anyone undertook the task of rehabilitating and protecting these refugees, it was Sardar Patel… From 3 am to midnight, even in his age (at that time), he met one princely state after another and convinced them to join India,” he added.
Urging the students to not be “disheartened by small setbacks”, Shah said, “The kind of environment that prevails in the country today is such that you can achieve impossible goals.”
“The 2047 Viksit Bharat policy of the Modi government is to focus on the youth – to hear their voice and understand their choices; to empower them and trust their power…,” he added.
