India may not have faced many problems if Patel was first PM, says Amit Shah

New Delhi [India], October 31 (ANI): Expressing feelings of several citizens on the occasion of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel's birth anniversary, Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Monday said India would not have faced many problems if Patel had been India's first prime minister instead of Jawaharlal Nehru.
Shah's remarks came while addressing Sardar Patel Vidyalaya here in the national capital.
"It was the belief of many that if Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel had been the first prime minister of India the country would not have faced many problems," said Shah on the 147th birth anniversary of Patel, the first Home Minister of India.
In support of his statement, Shah said it was Sardar Patel behind India's present map, saying "it wouldn't have been the same if Patel had not made efforts".
"Patel as he ensured the peaceful integration of more than 500 princely states and that of Lakshwadeep, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Junagadh, Hyderabad, and even Kashmir," Shah said while addressing students, teachers and many more people gathered in the school on the occasion.
The Home Minister suggested students study Sardar Patel to understand his works and his principles.
Citing a quote from former British Prime Minister Winston Churchill who said that India will disintegrate and collapse once the British left the country, Shah said the former UK PM has been proven wrong as Patel worked to instil grassroots democracy and in the past 75 years the country has made great strides and recently became the fifth largest economy in the world.
The Home Minister also lauded the efforts of Patel to spend nearly a month visiting the 500 princely states for integration despite his ill health.
He said even after his illness and weak lungs, Patel used to work late hours and signed the Instrument of Accession with Junagadh kingdom at 4.20 a.m.
Many people would not know that Patel played a key role in framing the constitution of the country as he was the one who named Dr Bhimrao Ambedkar to take up the responsibility.
Shah said, "for a long time, the country did not even do anything to remember the work of Sardar Patel".
It took so many years for a person like Sardar Patel to get Bharat Ratna, mentioned the Minister at the event, adding "It took so many years to build Sardar Patel memorial".
But, Shah said, Sardar Patel is such a person who is immortal by his work.
He said Mahatma Gandhi had idealistic and spiritual leadership, on the other hand, Sardar Patel was a realistic and practical leader, and the combination of these two leaders has given a lot to the country.
The minister also urged citizens in the country "not let any single language of the country die".
Shah's remarks came while speaking on the occasion of India's first Home Minister Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel's 147th birth anniversary.
"We Indians need to decide that no matter how many languages there are in this country, we will not let a single one die," Shah said while addressing at Sardar Patel School here in the national capital.
Clarifying that he is not against the learning of any language, Shah said, "I am not against learning any language. One can learn, English, German, Russian or French. There is no problem with it. But don't leave your own language."
Noting that "we, unfortunately, combine the knowledge of English with intellectual ability in our country", Shah said, "Language is not indicative of ability. Ability is your own, and it is expressed by any language. Don't have an inferiority complex about language. Come out of that."
"If you have the ability then the world will have to listen to you whether you speak in your own or any other language."
The minister urged people not to leave their own language, appealed to the teachers to speak with children in their mother tongue, and asked youth to protect and take forward their mother tongue.
"We will have to keep alive our mother tongue and carry it forward. The responsibility of breaking the barrier of inferiority complex of language is on the youth." (ANI)