New Delhi: Continuing its policy of recasting the way national icons are to be commemorated, the Narendra Modi government will observe October 31 as “Rashtriya Ekta Diwas” (National Unity Day) to mark the birth anniversary of country’s first home minister Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel.
The move comes days after the Union Cabinet decided that the government will associate only with the birth and death anniversaries of Mahatma Gandhi. The anniversaries of other departed leaders may be observed by respective trusts, parties, societies or supporters. It has also decided not to convert government bungalows into memorials.
Prime Minister Modi has repeatedly been accused by the Congress of trying to appropriate the legacy of Sardar Patel, a lifelong Congressman. When the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA) was in power, October 31 was largely marked by obituaries and encomiums to former prime minister Indira Gandhi, who was assassinated by her security guards in 1984.
In an official statement, the Home Ministry said on Thursday the occasion will provide an opportunity to reaffirm the inherent strength and resilience of “our nation to withstand the actual and potential threats to the unity, integrity and security of our country”.
However, there is no mention about Indira Gandhi’s death anniversary in the release.
Home Minister Rajnath Singh has written to all chief ministers to observe the National Unity Day and hold functions at state as well as district levels.
Last year, as the then Gujarat Chief Minister Modi launched an initiative to install the tallest iron statue in the world in honour of Patel in the Narmada river.
The new approach has come under attack from Congress and other opposition parties, which said the Modi government was trying to appropriate Congress icons and ignore those from the Gandhi-Nehru family or parties that differed from saffron ideology.
Meanwhile, state run news channel Doordarshan and All India Radio (AIR) have firmed up programmes to commemorate the birth anniversary of Sardar Patel, a Congress legend who hailed from Gujarat.
Rare archival footage has been dug up to create a documentary which includes views of historians and academicians talking about Patel’s constructive role in India’s history.
As part of a series of events planned for Friday, Modi is expected to join a “Run for Unity” in the heart of Delhi at Rajpath, a tree-lined avenue between India Gate and the presidential palace Rashtrapati Bhawan. Officials say a large number of young people and schoolchildren will participate in the run to be organised across major cities, districts and towns.
Last year, Modi had organised a similar array of events to mark the death anniversary of Sardar Patel in Gujarat, the state he ruled for 14 years until May, when he took over as prime minister.
A “Run for Unity” marathon held at over 1,100 locations became a major mobilisation event for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the months before the national election.
A pledge ceremony is also likely to take place in all government offices tomorrow.
Since he took charge in May, Modi has included other Congress icons in his campaigns.
The “Swachh Bharat” or Clean India Mission was launched on Mahatma Gandhi’s birth anniversary on October 2. Modi said the campaign would be taken to schools in a big way on former Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru’s birth anniversary on November 14.
