Tribune news service
New Delhi, December 27
Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Sunday that people should remember the sacrifices made by Guru Tegh Bahadur, Guru Gobind Singh, Mata Gujri and the four “Sahibzadas”.
In his last ‘Mann ki Baat’ speech of the year, Prime Minister Narendra Modi paid tribute to several revered Sikh personalities, including the sons of Guru Gobind Singh, and said their sacrifices helped keep our culture safe.
“We pay tribute to the brave Chaar Sahibzaade, we remember Mata Gujri, we remember the greatness of Sri Guru Tegh Bahadur Ji, Sri Guru Gobind Singh Ji. We remain indebted to these greats for their sacrifices and spirit of compassion,” he said. .
He also spoke of the COVID-19 pandemic and said it taught the country hard lessons.
“It was challenging,” Modi said, “but it taught people resilience. This resilience has its origin in the strength of the internal resources of ‘Aatam Nirbhar’, ”he said.
His comments come as the Modi government grapples with an ongoing farmers’ protest that largely comprises Sikh farmers.
The prime minister and the government have been trying to appease the protesters and have been trying to reach out to the Sikh community in particular since the protests escalated in November.
PTI reported that the IRCTC sent nearly two million emails between December 8 and 12 to its clients listing 13 decisions made by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to support the Sikh community, amid protests by the farmers against the three agricultural laws of the Center.
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Furthermore, the prime minister’s recent visit to Delhi’s Gurdwara Rakabganj amid a clash with farmers also drew the attention of the press.
Farmers, mainly Punjab and Haryana, have protested against three controversial farm laws that Parliament passed in September. Farmers mainly fear that the laws will weaken the APMC, or the mandi system, and leave them exposed to exploitation. Another objection is the clause allowing contract farming, which they say could lead to the loss of their land to large corporations. The center disputes both claims.
Farmers besieged Delhi in November, blocking the national highways leading to Delhi and have refused to budge ever since. Their numbers have continued to rise since then, when farmers across the country began joining the protests. So far, talks with the central government have yielded no results, and both parties have stuck to their weapons — farmers want a complete repeal of the laws and other legislation that promises a minimum price support, while the central government has offered various “concessions” in addition to repealing the laws.
Meanwhile, farmers’ unions claim that the central government has been trying to smear the movement by variously calling them “Khalistanis” and “urban naxals.” Meanwhile, the central government accuses the opposition and what they claim are vested political interests of deceptive protesters.
