PM Modi lashes out at Congress for creating controversy around his participation in Ganesh Utsav

Speaking at the launch of the ‘Subhadra’ scheme, Mr. Modi highlighted the significance of September 17, marking the historic annexation of Hyderabad into India and this year’s Ganesh Visarjan.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday (September 17, 2024) lashed out at the Congress for creating a controversy around his participation in a Ganesh Utsav alongside Chief Justice of India D.Y. Chandrachud.

Speaking at the launch of the ‘Subhadra’ scheme, Mr. Modi highlighted the significance of September 17, marking the historic annexation of Hyderabad into India and this year’s Ganesh Visarjan.

“At a time when we are bidding farewell to Lord Ganesh, you have seen Congress and its ecosystem expressing anger over the past few days because I attended a Ganesh Puja (without mentioning the event with CJI). In Karnataka, under the Congress government, they committed an even greater offense — they placed an idol of Lord Ganesh behind bars. The entire country is disturbed by these images,” the PM remarked.

“The hate-filled thinking and mindset to infuse poison in society will prove dangerous for our country. We should not let these hatred groups move ahead. We have to achieve many goals by staying together,” he said.

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Narrating how Ganesh Utsav played role in India’s freedom struggle, Mr. Modi said, “Ganesh Utsav is more than just a festival of faith. It played a key role in India’s freedom struggle. At a time when the British were sowing divisions based on caste and using the ‘divide and rule’ strategy to maintain power, Lokmanya Bal Gangadhar Tilak awakened the spirit of the nation by transforming Ganesh Utsav into a public celebration.”

“The religion teaches us to stay united by rising above caste divides. Ganesh Utsav had become symbol of such effort,” he observed.