“This is a right that nobody can snatch”, he said.
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Babasaheb could never see anyone remain deprived/backward, not only Dalits but also women of Tata-Birla families.
New Delhi, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday while praising B.R. Ambedkar said he was the voice of marginalised who inculcated inner power to the people of the country. “When the Vajpayee government was formed, people were scared that reservation was going to be abolished”. He was PM for two terms nothing of that sort happened. “The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has governments in several states-Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Haryana, Gujarat-but there has been no attempt to alter the reservation policy”, Modi said. “Yet untruths are being spread”.
“Babasaheb was the voice of the marginalised”, the prime minister said, adding that the founding father of the Indian Constitution should not be seen as a leader of any caste.
The Prime Minister’s renewed pitch on reservation comes ahead of assembly polls in five states-West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Assam, Kerala and Puducherry beginning next month.
“Some people do not even want to see us”.
Rajnath Singh said Modi in his address also hailed the 2016-17 budget and said that even small works, as enunciated in the budget proposals, like keeping small shops and business outlets open for all seven days should be taken to the people by the BJP workers.
“Those who did not do anything for 60 years often spread lies. And our party workers should not get diverted by non-issues and we should focus on our own agenda”, Modi said. He said Dr Ambedkar called for labour reforms and at the same time thought of industrialization for the progress of India. Dr. Ambedkar was a Messiah for all labourers – not just Dalit labourers – the Prime Minister said, explaining how he had contributed to limiting working hours to eight.
The thrust of Ambedkar’s teachings for the people was to educate themselves because “education followed by getting the people organised” can lead a community on the road to success and prosperity, said Modi. I don’t know how we can explain this, but we have had to wait for 60 years for this. But the government of the time was not progressive enough.
Modi paid glowing tributes to Babasaheb BR Ambedkar, comparing him with American civil rights activist Martin Luther King Jr.
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There is a bill on waterways in Parliament but let me tell you this vision is of Dr Ambedkar, he believed in India’s maritime strength.
