New Delhi, October 31
President Droupadi Murmu, Vice-President Jagdeep Dhankhar, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah today led the nation in paying tribute to Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel on his 147th birth anniversary.
Addressing an event to mark the occasion in Gujarat’s Ekta Nagar, where the Statue of Unity is located, PM Modi said enemies were trying to break India’s unity and the people should stand firm against such attempts.
Sardar Patel’s birth anniversary is observed as Rashtriya Ekta Diwas or National Unity Day.
Had he been pm…
The country would not have faced the many problems it is confronted with today had Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel been made India’s PM. —Amit Shah, Union Home Minister
His ironclad will united India
Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel’s ironclad will united India. The most befitting tribute to him would be to keep the flame of unity he ignited shining brighter. —Rahul Gandhi, Congress leader
“Our country has been eyesore for our enemies. Not just today but for thousands of years and even during the period of our slavery, foreign attackers did whatever they could to break this unity,” he said.
“Those forces are still functioninghellip; they want to make the people of the country fight in the name of caste, region and language,” he said.
Earlier in the day, the President, Vice-President, Union Home Minister and a host of dignitaries offered floral tributes to Sardar Patel during a special function held at Patel Chowk in New Delhi.
Delhi Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena and Minister of State for External Affairs Meenakshi Lekhi were also present on the occasion.
Shah flagged off a ‘Unity Run’ on the occasion. “Back then too, there were efforts by some forces to keep India divided. We have seen how Sardar Patel brought Junagarh, Jammu and Kashmir and Hyderabad under the fold of the Union of India through his farsightedness and political acumen,” said the Home Minister.
Speaking at another function at Sardar Patel School here, Shah said, “There has been a public opinion that country would not have faced the many problems it is confronted with today had Sardar Patel been made India’s first PM.”
Meanwhile, the Congress also paid tribute to Patel. Rahul Gandhi, in a tweet, said, “Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel’s ironclad will united India. The most fitting tribute to him would be to keep the flame of unity he ignited shining brighter than ever.”
Congress leader Jairam Ramesh tweeted, “Irrespective of what distorians peddle, Patel and Nehru formed a unique jugalbandhi for almost 30 years that shaped modern India.”
The Congress, from its official Twitter handle, said, “A great son of Bharat Mata, he continues to inspire us to fight the forces of hate and division.”