New Delhi: In his first radio address ‘Mann Ki Baat’ after returning to power for the third time, Prime Minister Narendra Modi thanked the people for participating in the world’s biggest electoral exercise and for showing unwavering faith in the Constitution.
“Today, I thank the countrymen for reiterating their unwavering faith in our Constitution and the democratic system of the country. The 2024 election was the biggest election in the world. Such a big election has never taken place in any country in the world,where 65 crore people voted. I congratulate the Election Commission and everyone associated with the voting process,” he said Sunday in the 111th episode of the radio programme.
“I always take a rest to come back again. I told (you) before the election in February that we will meet in a new episode of Maan Ki Baat after the election result, and I returned to meet you again after the result,” he said.
The previous episode was aired 25 February. In June, the BJP-led NDA came back to power for the third time albeit with a weaker mandate at 292 seats, much less than 353 seats in 2019. The opposition INDIA bloc surprised everyone as it bagged 232 seats.
Apart from the election results, the PM extolled the contributions of Sidhu and Kanhu Murmu who led the Santhal rebellion (1855–1856) against the Britishers.
“30th June is a very important day. Our tribal brothers and sisters celebrate this day as ‘Hul Diwas’. This day is associated with the indomitable courage of brave Sidhu-Kanhu, who strongly opposed the atrocities of foreign rulers.
“Veer Sidhu-Kanhu united thousands of Santhal companions and fought the British with all their might, and do you know when this happened? This happened in 1855, two years before India’s first war of independence in 1857. Then our tribal brothers and sisters in Santhal Pargana of Jharkhand took up arms against the foreign rulers,” he said.
The predominantly tribal state of Jharkhand will go to poll later this year. In the recent general elections, the BJP lost in all five parliamentary seats reserved for Scheduled Tribes in the eastern state.
Moving on to other topics, Modi urged the people to plant trees in honour of their mothers as a tribute to both motherhood and the environment.
“If I ask you which is the most precious relationship in the world, you will definitely say – mother. In all our lives, the status of ‘mother’ is the highest. A mother nurtures her child despite facing every pain. Every mother showers every affection on her child. This love of the mother who gave birth is like a debt on all of us which no one can repay,” he said.
“We cannot give anything to our mothers, but can we do anything else? With this thought in mind, a special campaign has been started on World Environment Day this year, the name of this campaign is ‘Ek Ped Maa Ke Naam‘. I have also planted a tree in the name of my mother.”
He expressed happiness that the campaign of planting trees in the memory or honour of mothers was progressing rapidly.”
With less than a month to go for the Paris Olympics, the PM sent his wishes to the Indian sports contingent and hoped that the team would maintain the momentum from the Tokyo edition of the sporting gala.
“The performance of our players in Tokyo won the heart of every Indian. Since the Tokyo Olympics, our athletes have been engaged whole-heartedly in preparations for the Paris Olympics. If we combine all the players, they have participated in around 900 international competitions,” PM said.
“You will get to see some things for the first time at the Paris Olympics. The talent of our players is coming to the fore in shooting. Both the men and women teams have qualified in table tennis. Our shooter daughters are also included in the Indian shotgun team. This time, the players of our team will also compete in those categories in wrestling and horse riding, in which they have never participated before,” he added.
The Tokyo Olympics was India’s most successful campaign with seven medals, including Neeraj Chopra’s historic gold in javelin and the men’s hockey team winning the bronze medal.
Other topics Modi spoke about were the recognition to Indian culture from the Arab world to Turkmenistan as well as the Karthumbi umbrella made by tribal women in Kerala and the Araku coffee from Andhra Pradesh.
(Edited by Tony Rai)
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Modisaab, by not giving majority to BJP and by empowering opposition, people want you to listen to opposition’s MANN KI BAAT. Please respect what people want.