NEW DELHI: A day before his Kolkata visit for the launch of ‘Parakram Diwas’ celebrations to mark the birth anniversary of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose amid the heated politically scene in West Bengal, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday reminisced about Haripura in Gujarat, a significant venue in Netaji’s political journey.
In a series of tweets, Modi said among the various programmes being organised across the nation, one special programme was being held in Haripura. “Haripura has a special relation with Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose. It was at the historic Haripura session of 1938 that Netaji Bose took up the presidentship of Congress party. Tomorrow’s programme at Haripura will be a tribute to Netaji Bose’s contribution to our nation,” PM tweeted and also shared several pictures of his visit to Haripura, where Bose was elected Congress chief as a rebel. He had defeated P Sitaramayya, who had the backing of Congress stalwarts including Mahatma Gandhi and Jawaharlal Nehru.
“On the eve of Netaji Bose’s Jayanti, my mind goes back to January 23, 2009, the day we launched e-Gram Vishwagram project from Haripura. This initiative revolutionised Gujarat’s IT infrastructure and took the fruits of technology to the poor, in the remotest parts of the state,” the PM said. Modi said he could never forget the affection of the people of Haripura, who took him in an elaborate procession on the same road as Bose was taken in 1938. “His procession included a decorated chariot drawn by 51 bullocks. I also visited the place where Netaji stayed in Haripura,” he added.
Modi said the thoughts and ideals of Bose would keep inspiring us to work towards building an India that he would be proud of… a strong and self-reliant India, whose human-centric approach contributes to a better planet in the years to come.