Self-proclaimed gau rakshaks make me angry: Modi

Sending a strong signal to cow vigilantes who have unleashed violent attacks on Muslims and dalits, the most recent one being in Gujarat, Prime Minister Narendra Modi broke his silence on the raging issue and said that most of them are “anti-social” elements running “shops” in the name of cow protection and that makes him “very angry”.

Mindful of the fact that increasing attacks on dalits may hit the BJP’s prospects in the Assembly elections in Gujarat, due in November 2017, Mr Modi said during his first-ever Town Hall interaction at the Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium here on Saturday that running such self-proclaimed help groups does not give anyone the licence to harass others.

“It makes me angry that people are running shops in the name of cow protection. Most of them are anti-social elements hiding behind the mask of cow protection. I will ask state governments to prepare a dossier on such people as 80 per cent of them will be found to be involved in anti-social activities which no society will approve of,” he said.

The Prime Minister’s sharp denouncement of cow vigilantes came at an event to mark the second anniversary of his government’s MyGov.in initiative where he added that most of these cow vigilantes run illegal activities at night and become “gau rakshaks” during the day. His comments come at a time when his government and BJP are facing flak over incidents of violence against dalits and Muslims by cow vigilantes in various states, including Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh.

Noting that more cows die from consuming plastics than slaughter, he said those who want to serve the cow should rather work towards stopping them from eating plastics.

On foreign policy, Mr Modi said, “India First is the central point (of our foreign policy). It is about protecting India’s strategic interest, it is to ensure that India marches forward in achieving economic prosperity by leaps and bounds and reaches the position which it is destined to reach.”

The Prime Minister emphasised on the need to expedite redressal of public grievances within a stipulated time frame. The PM underlined the fact that good governance is all about making things simpler for people and cutting down on unnecessary bureaucracy, adding that good grievance redressal mechanism is one of the biggest strengths of a democracy.

Last mile delivery of promises made during elections should be a priority of any government and this too is another pillar of good governance, he said.

The PM said that his government plans to develop 300 villages across the country as growth centres for the area by creating city-like infrastructure, from education and healthcare to digital connectivity.

Under this, the National RURBAN (Rural to Urban) Mission aims to provide better quality of life and employment in villages, he said. There is no dearth of smart cities, but shouldn’t the scenario of villages change, he asked. “Facilities available in cities must be made available to villages.”

Rurban Mission is “Smart City Plus”, where infrastructure identical to cities, like digital and physical connectivity as well as quality healthcare and education will be provided, he said. “The idea is that the soul of a village is retained while amenities of cities are provided.”

These villages are the ones where rural people may visit for healthcare, education or attending to other needs like repairing or recharging mobiles.

On the economic scenario, he said that the world is in recession yet India has maintained a growth rate of 7.6 per cent, and if 8 per cent growth rate is achieved for the next 30 years then India will be at the top.

He also said that tourism will boost our economy, we should try and drive our economy. If we achieve 8% growth rate for 30 years then we will be at the top.