AHMEDABAD: In an indirect attack on the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Sunday warned youngsters in Gujarat not to get influenced by promises of other political parties, saying that doing so can ruin the state’s progress.
Shah was on a one-day visit to Ahmedabad, where he attended several programmes, including the inauguration of smart schools. During the event, he made an oblique reference to the AAP, saying,
“There are two types of people. One who sweats and works in Kutch for five years and then contests election via political parties, and the second type of people who buy their new clothes just five months before the election and start making promises for votes. But people of Gujarat know the second of kind of people very well.”
Shah also drew a contrast between the Congress and BJP rules in the state.
“During the Congress’ rule, curfew used to remain imposed in Ahmedabad for 200 days in a year and communal riots were common. But after the BJP came to power, curfew has become a thing of the past,” he said, adding that children born after2002 would not even know what curfew is.
He also drew attention to the state of education in Gujarat, saying, “During the BJP’s rule, the dropout ratio in primary education has come down from 37 per cent to less than 3 per cent. The number of children getting primary education has risen from 40 per cent to 95 per cent.”
Later in the day, he inaugurated the sixth All India Prison Duty Meet, organised by the Bureau of Police Research and Development, which will be attended by police personnel from 19 states and union territories.
Addressing the gathering, Shah said there is a need to change the way prisons are perceived in society.
“Not everyone who goes to jail is a criminal by nature. Sometimes there are circumstances that push them,” he said, talking about the need of prison reforms. In the evening, he launched the anthem and mascot of the 36th National Games at Ahmedabad.
In the evening, Shah launched the anthem and mascot of the 36th National Games at Ahmedabad.
After becoming chief minister, Narendra Modi took initiatives like 'Kanya Kelavani" and 'Gunotsav' to raise the enrolment ratio to 100 per cent and also brought the dropout ratio to almost zero, Shah said.
The AAP led by national convener and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal has been trying to emerge as the main contender against the ruling BJP in the state by promising what the party claims are "guarantees" once it comes to power.
Shah said the setting up of these four 'anupam shart shalas' (matchless smart schools) by the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation is the beginning of a new chapter in primary school education, adding that 22 such facilities will be set up by the civic body.
During the Congress rule, the school dropout ratio was 37 per cent, and only 67 children out of 100 took admitted to schools, Shah said.
"Narendrabhai started new initiatives. In the name of 'Kanya Kelavani,' he organised a praveshotsav (enrolment drive). Children were brought from households and the enrolment rate rose to 100 per cent for the first time in the whole country. The dropout ratio that the Congress left at 37 per cent was brought down to zero by Narendrabhai," Shah said.
Modi also started initiatives like 'Gunotsav' (to improve learning levels of students at the elementary level) and focussed on teachers training, he added.
"If any state has to study a model regarding education, I can say without hesitation that it should come to Gujarat. Whether it is village, municipality, city, the kids of poor or rich, the BJP government under the leadership of Narendra Modi has made all arrangements to improve the level of their primary education," Shah said.
He said the Congress would once again bring up caste talks and make new promises in the run-up to the polls, to be held later this year.
The law and order in the state had deteriorated under previous Congress governments but stringent efforts by Narendra Modi as CM has ensured that communal riots and curfews are a thing of the past, Shah asserted.
"The development journey that has continued in the last 20 years will run for another five years. Bhupendrabhai (Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel) has executed all the projects beautifully and in time and funds given by the Central government," he said.
While the electricity situation under the Congress dispensations was erratic and people in villages had to request their elected representatives for supply during dinner time, Modi had ensured the state now has electricity all 24 hours of the day, Shah said.
He also targeted Kejriwal by claiming some people were trying to provide a backdoor entry in Gujarat politics to social activist Medha Patkar, who had opposed the state's lifeline Narmada project.
Patkar, the founder member of Narmada Bachao Andolan that opposed the Narmada dam project and fought on rehabilitation issues, was fielded by the AAP from Mumbai's North East seat in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections.
"These days, some people have made a new start to give Medha Patkar, who opposed the Narmada project, a backdoor entry into Gujarat politics.
I would like to ask the youth of Gujarat if they would allow those who opposed the Narmada project as well as the development of Gujarat to enter the state," he said.
Shah was addressing a gathering at the inaugural function of the 36th National Games being hosted by Gujarat a few months before the Assembly elections.
"Those who want to bring Medha Patkar, who opposed Gujarat and our lifeline Narmada project and did not let go of any chance to defame Gujarat on every possible forum, should stop here itself. There is no place for those opposing Gujarat," Shah said.
Shah said he had trust in the people of Gujarat, adding that those who had opposed the state will never be accepted by them.
Under the leadership of Narendra Modi, who was chief minister of the state, Gujarat had developed in different spheres in the last 20 years, setting parameters that perhaps cannot be broken in the coming decades.
Under Modi's leadership, Gujarat has developed infrastructures like roads and ports, 24-hour electricity supply, and a robust law and order situation.
"This all happened because Modiji took Narmada water till Khavda in Kutch. Had Modiji not come to Gujarat as Bhagirath (a mythological figure credited with bringing River Ganga on Earth) and had Narmada water not carried till Kutch, then this development would not have been possible," said Shah.
Incidentally, at a recent function in Bhuj, Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel had called Patkar an "Urban Naxal", a term often used by some segments of the political spectrum to describe Maoist sympathizers and certain social activists.
(With PTI Inputs)