Modi govt implemented 'antyodaya' concept in true sense: Rajnath

Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh on Monday said it was the government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi that had, in true sense, implemented the concept of "antyodaya" (benefits reaching the last person in the society), adding that no one had ever imagined that the PM would wash the feet of sanitation workers with his own hands. Addressing a gathering here after handing over certificates to the beneficiaries of various schemes, he said, "You would never have imagined that the prime minister of any country would wash the feet of safai workers with his own hands. Serving the poor is serving the almighty and it is with this feeling that Prime Minister Narendra Modi did this."

Singh also said, "We are a firm believer of antyodaya, which aims at the development and betterment of the person belonging to the last strata of the society. Inspired by this feeling, Prime Minister Narendra Modi is working on this." The home minister, who is also the Lucknow MP, said in the history of independent India, no government barring the current one had framed any policy to benefit those belonging to the last section of the society.

Taking a jibe at the Congress, he said, "You will be amazed to know that during the tenure of the Congress governments, only 25 lakh jan awas were built, while within 55 months of the Modi government, 1.35 crore jan awas were built." Pointing out that the nation was celebrating the 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi, Singh said, "He (Gandhi) had said the government should make policies, which will benefit the last strata of the society. The central government under Prime Minister Narendra Modi has made such policies."

Referring to the various welfare schemes of the Centre, he said, "I know that if any member of a poor family falls ill, no one musters the courage to hospitalise that person. However, the Ayushman Bharat Yojana has given much relief." Singh also assured the audience that if any eligible person was left out of the ambit of any scheme, "then we will give them their rights".

Later, speaking at a programme organised by the Oudh Bar Association on the high court premises, the home minister said the world had now started recognising the power of India. The Modi government had earned pride for the country at the international level and India's economy had grown to occupy the fifth spot in the world from its earlier ninth spot, he said, adding that he believed that the nation would bag the third position in another 10 years.

Singh also hailed the legal profession as a noble one and said lawyers were spokespersons of the society. "Our judicial system is very strong," he added. The senior BJP leader lamented on the pendency of cases in courts and pointed out that jails were overcrowded and even those who had served their sentences were languishing in prisons.

The home minister also attended a programme for backward classes organised by the Lucknow unit of the saffron party. Addressing the party workers, he said, "The amount of work done by the Narendra Modi government for uplift of the backward classes has not been done since Independence. The previous governments had crippled the backward classes commission and this was done by those political parties, which claimed that they were the messiah of the backward classes."

Singh also said earlier, the commission was only engaged in identifying castes and recommending their inclusion into the reservation list, "but Modi worked to get constitutional status for it".