BANSWARA: Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot on Tuesday said that when Prime Minister Narendra Modi goes abroad, he receives great honour because he’s the Prime Minister of the nation of Gandhi, where democracy is deep-rooted. “When world realises this, they feel proud that the Prime Minister of that country is coming to them”, Gehlot said during the event ‘Mangarh Dham ki Gaurav Gatha’, which recalled the 1913 Mangarh massacre.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday shared the dais with veteran Congress leader Gehlot at the event. The Prime Minister also declared the Mangarh Dham in Banswara district of Rajasthan as a national monument. It was here that the British forces — on November 17, 1913 — gunned down more than 1,500 people of the Bhil tribal community. Present at the event on Monday were also the chief ministers of Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat, Shivraj Singh Chouhan and Bhupendra Patel, respectively.
Addressing the event, Prime Minister Modi recalled his days as the Chief Minister of Gujarat. “Ashok ji (Gehlot) and I had worked together as Chief Ministers. He was the most senior in our lot of Chief Ministers. Ashok ji is still one of the senior-most Chief Ministers among those who are sitting on the stage right now”. As the Chief Minister of Gujarat, the Prime Minister recalled serving the region of Mangarh, which is part of Gujarat, and informed that Govind Guru spent the last years of his life here, and his energy and knowledge can still be felt in the soil of this land. The Prime Minister remembered that the entire area, which was a barren land earlier, got transformed with greenery after he urged everyone via the platform of Van Mahotsav. He thanked the tribal community for selflessly working for the campaign.
Remembering the massacre of November 17, 1913 in Mangarh, the Prime Minister remarked that it was an example of extreme cruelty by British rule in India. “On one hand we had the innocent tribals who were seeking independence while on the other hand, it was the British colonial rulers who after surrounding the hills of Mangarh, massacred more than one thousand five hundred innocent men, women, elderly and children in broad daylight”.
The Prime Minister interjected that due to unfortunate circumstances, such a significant and impactful event of the freedom struggle could not find its place in the history books. “In this Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav, India is filling this void and correcting the mistakes that were made decades ago,” the Prime Minister exclaimed. “India’s past, history, present and India’s future will never be complete without the tribal community. Every page of the story of our freedom struggle is filled with tribal valour,” he added. The Prime Minister recalled glorious struggles that date back to as early as the 1780s when Santhal Sangram was fought under the leadership of Tilka Manjhi.
He mentioned the 1830-32 period when the country witnessed Larka Andolan under the leadership of Budhu Bhagat. In 1855 Sidhu-Kanhu Kranti energised the nation. Bhagwan Birsa Munda inspired everyone with his energy and patriotism. Throwing light on the discussion about the total development of Mangarh Dham, the Prime Minister expressed a strong desire for the grand expansion of Mangarh Dham.
The Prime Minister requested the four state governments of Rajasthan, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra to work together and have a detailed discussion about preparing a roadmap so that the memorial site of Govind Guru Ji finds a place on the world map. “I am sure that the development of Mangarh Dham will make this area a place of inspiration for the new generation”, the Prime Minister added. (ANI)