Taking a serious note of the assault on two "Kashmiri brothers" in Lucknow, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday said that strong action should be taken against the perpetrators of such crimes as the country needs to move ahead with the 'mantra' of unity.
"The Uttar Pradesh government acted swiftly against some miscreants for the way they dealt with our Kashmiri brothers in Lucknow," said he, while referring to the assault by a few members of a right-wing fringe group on two dry fruit vendors from the Valley in Lucknow on Wednesday.
"I request all other states to take stern action against those trying to indulge in such activities. We have to end terrorism. We have to move ahead with the mantra of unity," said Prime Minister Modi.
Wearing saffron shirts, they beat up the two Kashmiris after asking for their identity cards. However, they were stopped by some other locals.
After the video went viral, the police constituted a special team and arrested four people within 24 hours in connection with the incident, which sparked a nationwide condemnation.
The Prime Minister, who was in the city to inaugurate several projects, also alleged that some people are deliberately making statements that are giving strength to the forces against the country after the Pulwama terrorist attack followed by IAF air strikes at terror camps in Pakistan.
"Some people are defaming our security forces. They are deliberately talking and making statements for their own political interests, which in turn are strengthening the forces working against our country," he said.
"You are happy with the courage of our army. It is, however, unfortunate that attempts are being made to downplay our Army's valour," said the Prime Minister.
"Today, there is a pressure of the whole world on Pakistan, as they have been caught red-handed on terrorism. But our own people's statements are helping Pakistan," he said.
"It is the responsibility of every Indian not to let others take advantages of our statements. Pakistan is using your statements and misleading people. This is because of you," alleged the Prime Minister.
Taking a jibe at the grand alliance, he said: "Those involved in the game of 'Mahamilavat' (great adulteration) do not like Modi, who is fighting against terrorism, corruption, and poverty."
Highlighting the Central government's action against terrorism, he said: "Our government is taking many decisions against terrorism, which has unnerved them. They have realised that there is no place for them anywhere."
The Prime Minister also paid respects to the brave soldiers-Shyam Babu and Deepak Pandey-from Kanpur, who lost their lives in Pulwama terror attack and Budgam IAF plane crash.
Talking about the success of Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana, he said: "As many as 1.5 lakh houses were constructed under the scheme. However, the previous government was able to construct only 25 lakh houses."
The Prime Minister reiterated that by 2022, every household in the country will have a house under the PM Awas Yojana.
"Under Saubhagya scheme, more than 75 lakh electricity connections were provided for free," he said.
He also spoke about the initiatives taken by the Union Government to clean the Ganga river. "People used to think that cleaning Ganga is impossible but now his government is making the impossible possible."
Prime Minister Modi also inaugurated digitally Lucknow Metro Rail project and laid the foundation stone of Agra Metro Rail project. He laid the foundation stone of Panki Thermal Power plant and unveiled plaques to mark the launch of various development projects at Niralanagar in Kanpur.
(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)