Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday said he was surprised that some people had the audacity to see the campaign surrounding Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel's Statue of Unity through a “political lens”. Modi was speaking after inaugurating the Statue of Unity, which at 182 metres is the world's tallest, at Sadhu Bet in Kevadia Colony, Gujarat.
The Statue of Unity and facilities surrounding it, like the Valley of Flowers and Wall of Unity, came up at an estimated cost of Rs 3,000 crore. Modi also threw open the Valley of Flowers, Wall of Unity and a museum on Sardar Patel.
The maker of the Statue of Unity, Ram Suthar, was felicitated on the occasion.
Keeping his speech mostly apolitical and without taking the name of any party or person, Modi said that “They [critics of the Statue of Unity] had created an atmosphere that appeared as if we have committed a crime.”
In the entire ceremony that lasted for over three hours, flower petals were showered on the Statue of Unity, and Modi too performed a puja at the feet of Sardar Patel's statue. He poured water from 30 rivers on the feet of the Statue of Unity.
The controversy surrounding the expenses of the Statue of Unity, claims that some parts of it were made in China and the allegations of ignoring tribal rights hardly seemed to bother Modi as he dwelt on recalling Sardar Patel's legacy and his paramount contribution in merging the erstwhile royal states after independence.
Modi had conceived the idea of a statue of Sardar Patel in 2010 during his stint as Gujarat chief minister and then laid the foundation for it in 2013. Modi revealed that at the time of laying the foundation stone for the Sardar Patel statue, he had in mind that he would inaugurate it as the prime minister.
Modi, who looked emotional while going around the Statue of Unity and the Valley of Flowers, said that he would gift to the Sardar Patel museum the first block of iron that was received from farmers.
Modi said that his first idea was to see if a huge statue could be carved from the mountains in the area. However, that was not possible and it would not have been strong enough, he said, adding that it was the reason he changed his mind to have the Statue of Unity made out of iron.
Modi said the tallest statue would help the future generations of India and the world to remember Sardar Patel's courage, capacity and commitment. Patel was the person who foiled the plans of dividing India into pieces, he added.
According to Modi, Sardar Patel had Kautilya's strategy and Shivaji's valour. Modi said had it not been for Patel, “We would have required visas to see lions in the Gir Forest, worship the Jyotirling at Somnath and see Charminar of Hyderabad. It is because of Patel that we are able to go freely from Kutch to Kohima and Kargil to Kanyakumari.”
Taking an indirect dig at the opposition over the delay in the Sardar Sarovar Project, Modi said while that project took so many years to complete, the Statue of Unity “came up in front of your eyes”.
Modi said that the whole idea behind the statue was to ensure that Sardar Patel got the respect he deserved. He also said that he wanted to establish a virtual museum to remember the royal families who merged their states with India.
Attempting to allay fears of tribals that their livelihoods would be snatched away by the Statue of Unity, Modi claimed that thousands of them would get direct benefits due to development of tourism in the area. Modi said it would also help in spreading tribals' traditional knowledge far and wide.
With the 2019 Lok Sabha elections a few months away, Modi did not forget to reiterate the steps the NDA had taken in the last four years. Modi said while “Sardar Patel united India, we [NDA government] had united the country financially by bringing GST”.
Madhya Pradesh Governor Anandiben Patel, Karnataka Governor Vajubhai Vala and BJP president Amit Shah were present at the dedication of the Statue of Unity.
The BJP is all set to take political mileage out of the Statue of Unity. In Gujarat, Ekta Yatras have been conducted and similar yatras are expected to be conducted in the entire country. The Congress has maintained that Patel was opposed to the RSS.