 | « Back to article | Print this article |
Modi said social justice is not a lip service for the government but a commitment.
In his first comments on the gruesome incidents of rape in Unnao and Kathua, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday called them as a 'shame' for the country and asserted that the guilty will not be spared and ' our daughters will get justice'.
Expressing anguish over the two incidents which have triggered widespread outrage, he also said such crimes challenge the very concept of social justice 'and as a society and a country we all are ashamed of it'.
"I want to assure the nation that no criminal will be spared. Justice will be done. Our daughters will get justice. We all will have to work together to end this internal evil," he said at an event to inaugurate the B R Ambedkar memorial in New Delhi.
The prime minister's remarks came amid mounting attacks by the Opposition against the Bharatiya Janata Party governments in Uttar Pradesh and Jammu and Kashmir alleging shielding of the accused due to political pressure.
Modi said social justice is not a lip service for the government but a commitment.
"But the kind of incidents we have seen in the past challenge the very concept of social justice," he said.
He said such incidents are a shame for any society. "It is an insult to the sacrifice made by the freedom fighters who gave their future for the nation."
The prime minister recalled one of his independence day speeches in which he had asked parents to question sons and only the girls.
"We will have to strengthen family systems, social values and justice delivery system," he said.
Won't allow SC/ST Act to be diluted: PM
The PM asserted that his government will not let the law to prevent atrocities on SCs and STs to be diluted after the Supreme Court laid down new guidelines to prevent its misuse.
He also launched a no-holds-barred attack on the Congress, accusing it of spreading 'lies' to create fissures.
"I want to assure the nation that the law which has been made stringent by us will not allowed to be affected (by the SC order)... Do not get trapped by the Congress and those parties who have surrendered to the Congress culture," he said at the inauguration of Dr B R Ambedkar memorial in New Delhi.
His remarks on the SC verdict and the resultant protests marred by violence assume significance as several opposition parties have accused the BJP and the government of being anti-Dalit.
He said in 2015, it was his government which included several new crimes under the ambit of the Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989. "From 22, the crimes to be covered under the law were increased to 47 by our government... We also enhanced the compensation to be aid to the victims," he said.
Modi said when the government amended the law, it allowed the provision of denial of interim bail to remain to ensure that it remains effective.
He said special courts are being set up to fast track disposal of cases against the SCs and the STs. "Our government has consistently tried to maintain social balance through the rule of law."
Modi said while the Supreme Court delivered its verdict on March 20, the government acted fast to file a review petition. He said people often wonder about the delay in moving the top court.
"But only a few know that there were public holidays in between. When I tell this to people, they realise how fast we acted," he said.
He also used the occasion to tear into the Congress alleging that it uses Dr Ambedkar's name 'out of compulsion' to further its political gains.
Modi said the Congress also spreads 'lies and rumours' to create fissures in the society.
He said the Congress is 'creating obstacles' in the passage of a bill to grant constitutional status to the OBC Commission by not allowing Parliament to function.
He said the Congress only spreads rumours to create differences between brothers.
"At times they spread rumour that reservation is being scraped. At times it relates to ending the law to prevent atrocities on the SCs and the STs... They never believed in Ambedkar's ideology... They use his name out of compulsion to gain votes," he said.
He accused the Congress to insulting Dr Ambedkar when he was alive and continuing to do so even after his death.
Modi gave several examples to underline that Congress was not fond of Dr Ambedkar as he refused to 'bow before the Congress ecosystem'.
He said the Dalit icon was not made part of any Cabinet committee, and not allowed to win Lok Sabha elections by the Congress. He said the then prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru campaigned against him and Ambedkar had to face the 'humiliation' of being defeated twice in elections.
Modi pointed out that it was Shyama Prasad Mookerjee who helped Dr Ambedkar get entry in the Rajya Sabha.
He said Dr Ambedkar was denied a portrait in the Central Hall of Parliament and lack of space was cited as the reason.
"Though leaders such as Rajiv Gandhi were honoured with Bharat Ratna, Ambedkar got it when VP Singh was the prime minister and BJP was a constituent... He was not a BJP member... Atal Bihari Vajpayee and L K Advani pushed for a Bharat Ratna award for him...," Modi said.
Modi takes metro to attend event
The PM took a ride in a Delhi Metro train to reach the venue of the event in north Delhi's Civil Lines area.
Modi boarded the train at the Lok Kalyan Marg metro station to participate in the event, where he inaugurated the Dr Ambedkar National Memorial at 26, Alipur Road, on the eve of the Dalit icon's birth anniversary.
Some commuters were seen taking pictures with the prime minister inside a coach in which he travelled.
"Prime Minister Narendra Modi today travelled by Delhi Metro from Lok Kalyan Marg station to Vidhan Sabha station of Line-2 (Yellow Line) from 5:41 pm to 6:01 pm," a senior DMRC official said.
During his travel, services were running normal on Line-2 as per the normal schedule, he said.
26, Alipur Road is the place where Ambedkar lived in his last days and died in 1956.
The Prime Minister's Office shared pictures of the new memorial through a series of tweets.
'This is the place where Dr Ambedkar attained Mahaparinirvana on 6th December 1956,' the PMO tweeted.
'Prime Minister @narendramodi had laid the foundation stone of the memorial on March 21, 2016. The memorial of Babasaheb Ambedkar, the creator of the Constitution of India has been given the shape of a book,' it said.
An Ashokan Pillar stands in front of the book-shaped building in the sprawling premises. Iconic gates, Bodhhi tree, musical fountain and a meditation room are its other features.
'This memorial will serve as one of the vital focal points that will bring Dr. Ambedkar even closer to today's younger generation,' the PMO tweeted.
'Dr Ambedkar Mahaparinirvana Sthal at 26, Alipur Road, was dedicated to the Nation by former Prime Minister Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee in December 2003,' it said.
Prior to this Modi had travelled by Delhi Metro on the day of inauguration of a corridor of the Magenta Line on December 25 last year.
In April 2017, Modi along with his Australian counterpart Malcom Turnbull had travelled by metro to reach Akshardham station, before visiting the temple.