Manas Dasgupta
NEW DELHI, Oct 31: The Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday launched a scathing attack on his detractors branding them as “urban Naxals” and called upon the people to identify and fight against the unholy alliance who he alleged were trying to divide the country on caste and weaken the country’s social unity and integrity.
Addressing a gathering on the occasion of the National Unit Day to celebrate the birth anniversary of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel at the Statue of Unity at Kevadiya Colony in Gujarat, Mr Modi targeted the opposition but without naming any party said some powers within and outside India were trying to weaken the national unity for the sake of politics. “Some forces in and outside India are trying to destabilise the country and spread anarchy to create a negative image of the nation in the world. They are trying to divide the country on caste lines and are against a developed India,” he said.
Later in the day, Mr Modi while addressing the jawans while celebrating Diwali with them at the India – Pakistan border in Kutch district, also in Gujarat, said his government hold every inch of the land in the country as dear to hear and would never compromise with even an inch of India’s territory. “There is such a government in this country that cannot compromise with even an inch of the country’s land.”
He said this is why the Centre’s policies were aligned with the resolve of the armed forces. “We don’t depend on words of our enemies, we believe in strength of our army for defending the country. When the world sees you, it sees India’s strength, when enemies see you, they see an end to their sinister plans,” he added.
Since 2014, Sardar Patel’s birth anniversary has been celebrated on October 31 as ‘Rashtriya Ekta Diwas’ (the National Unity Day). He urged the people of the country to identify this nexus of “urban Naxals” which he said was trying to break the country.
“Countries are growing apart, but coming close to India. This is not ordinary, a new history is being written. The world is watching how India is resolving its issues. So we have to protect our unity,” he said, after paying tributes to Sardar Patel, who played a key role in national integration after India’s Independence in 1947.
“Some perverted powers are worried about India’s rise. Within India, and outside it, such people are trying to create instability and anarchy. They want the wrong message to go to global investors. These people are targeting the forces, running misinformation campaigns. They are trying to divide (people) in the name of caste. They aim to weaken India’s society and unity. They don’t want India to be developed because the politics of ‘poor India, weak India’ suits them. So they are breaking India in the name of the Constitution. We have to identify this alliance of Urban Naxals and fight against them,” the Prime Minister said.
While he did not explicitly name any Opposition party or leader, the reference was clear. The INDIA Opposition bloc, led by the Congress, built its Lok Sabha election campaign around a ‘save Constitution’ slogan and is demanding a caste Census to ensure better representation of backward classes in jobs and education. In this general election, the BJP led by Prime Minister Modi returned to power despite falling short of getting a majority on its own.
The Prime Minister paid tribute to Sardar Patel and said the BJP government’s vision reflects its commitment to national unity. He said a ‘one nation, one tax’ system and abolished the Article 370 wall, revoking Jammu and Kashmir’s special status. “The discriminatory policies and intent of previous governments weakened national unity. Over the past 10 years, the new governance model has eliminated discrimination. We have chosen the path of sabka saath sabka vikas. This approach has ended the dissatisfaction among people and enhanced their trust in development schemes,” the Prime Minister said.
The Prime Minister said Aadhaar, which represents ‘one nation, one identity’, is being discussed globally. “We brought ‘one nation, one tax’ system through GST. We brought ‘one nation, one health insurance’ scheme through Ayushman Bharat. Now, we are working towards ‘one nation, one election’ that will strengthen democracy and optimise resources. India is also moving towards ‘one nation, one civil code’.”
The country, he said, was happy that after 70 years of Independence, a ‘one nation, one Constitution’ pledge has been fulfilled. “This is my biggest tribute to Sardar sahab. For 70 years, Baba Saheb Ambedkar’s Constitution was not implemented across the country. Those who chant the name of the Constitution insulted it so much. The reason was the wall of Article 370 in Jammu and Kashmir. Article 370 has been buried forever. For the first time, voting was done without discrimination in this Assembly election. For the first time, the Chief Minister there has taken oath on the Constitution of India. This scene must have given immense satisfaction to the makers of the Indian Constitution, their souls must have found peace and this is our humble tribute to the makers of the Constitution.”
The Prime Minister said this National Unity Day marks the beginning of Sardar Patel’s 150th birth anniversary and the country will celebrate this occasion for two years. “Unity is important for economic progress and our goal to become a developed nation. This unity is important for social harmony. If we are committed to social justice, unity is the pre-condition. Let us move forward together,” he said.
“As Naxalism is ending in jungles, a new model of urban Naxals is raising its head. Today urban Naxals target even those who say that you will remain safe if you remain united. We have to identify urban Naxals and unmask them,” he said.
Later, Mr Modi, who joined BSF, army, navy and air force personnel at Lakki Nala’s Sir Creek area, told the jawans that serving the nation was good fortune and they were doing this despite the fact that such service was not easy. “Whenever I celebrate my Diwali with you all, my joy increases several times. This time, Diwali is special as Lord Ram has returned to his abode in Ayodhya after 500 years,” he said, adding, “people of India feel their country is safe because of you.”
He said the government was doing everything to equip the armed forces with modern warfare technology, so as to put it in the league of the world’s most advanced militaries. He added that the basis of this was self-reliance in the defence sector. “Keeping in mind the needs of the 21st century, today we are equipping our armies, our security forces, with modern resources. We are putting our army in the league of the world’s most modern military forces. The basis of these efforts of ours is self-reliance in the defence sector, he said.
Mr Modi further said while the army, navy and air force were seen as different entities, their strength would increase manifold when they come together. The country’s top priority was to develop infrastructure in the border areas, he said. “I am proud of our soldiers who have shown their capabilities in every tough situation.”
He also spoke about border tourism, which he said was an aspect related to national security that is not discussed as much. “Kutch has immense potential in this… Today, when we are moving so fast towards goal of developed India, you all are protectors of this dream,” he added.