In an effort to assuage the hurt feelings of the Dalits in the country, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday called upon his countrymen to treat them with dignity and not hate them. He was highly critical of the Opposition parties, saying they were fishing in troubled waters and driving a wedge between Dalits and the BJP for political gains. Mr Modi stated emphatically that discrimination against Dalits should stop and the onus for this lay on everyone.
“If you want to take revenge, fire bullets at me. Why are you attacking my innocent Dalit brethren when all you want is to target the BJP,” he said in an indirect dig at the Opposition that has been blasting the BJP for the series of attacks on Dalits. Airing his views on another crucial issue, he asked all Chief Ministers to tackle the “fake gau rakshaks” or self-styled cow protectors with an iron hand. These fakes have become a threat to national unity and integrity, and they should not be spared, the Prime Minister said while speaking at a public meeting in Gajwel.
Similarly, the Prime Minister reiterated his view expressed a day ago in Delhi that these men were essentially anti-social elements bent upon dividing society and disturbing its peace. “States have to remain vigilant against their actions,” he said, adding, “My appeal to everyone is beware of these handful of vigilantes who have nothing to do with cow protection. they want to create ‘tanaav’ (tension) in society. I want the real cow protectors to expose them and the states should take action against them,” Mr Modi said.
Meanwhile, thirty-two days after Kashmir plunged into unrest in the wake of the killing of Hizbul Mujahideen commander Burhan Wani by security forces on July 8, Prime Minister on Tuesday reached out to the Valley saying, “The azaadi (freedom) every Indian has also belongs to every Kashmiri. We want same bright future for every youth in Kashmir.”
“Jo azaadi Bharat ko hai, wo Kashmir ko bhi hai. Hume isse vishwa ka swarg banana hai (The freedom Indians have, also belongs to Kashmiris. We need to make it a paradise on earth),” Mr Modi said while launching the fortnight-long celebrations of India’s 70th Independence Day at Bhabhra, the birthplace of revolutionary freedom fighter Chandra Shekhar Azad, in Alirajpur district in Madhya Pradesh.
DC take
No sooner does any controversy break out, than the people, the media and the political parties alike expect of the Prime Minister to air his opinion on it. It has been observed that in most of the cases the PM does speak up. Be it the Rohith Vemula issue or cow vigilantes, the Prime Minister has not only taken a strong stand but also shared the pain of the common man. Also, there should never be a clamour for him to have his silence broken on the issues as if his ministers speak, even that is government stand.
