Jodhpur: Union home minister Amit Shah unveiled a statue of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel in Jodhpur on Sunday at a special ceremony organised outside the Circuit House in which Union minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat, Rajasthan deputy chief minister Premchand Bairwa, minister Jogaram Patel, local MLAs and other senior party officials were present.
Addressing the ceremony, Shah said Sardar Patel had a deep connection with Jodhpur. If he were not there, Jodhpur would probably be a part of Pakistan today.
Lambasting the Congress, he said it never gave respect to Sardar Patel. At the same time, it is also true that if Sardar Patel had not been there, the integration of the princely states of the country would have been in dream. He was the one who merged princely states like Jodhpur of Rajasthan including Gujarat into India. Along with this, he strategically developed the airways of Jodhpur and pursued the Maharaja of here for the merger.
"Well, this is also the reality that no one did justice to Sardar Patel. Before BJP's rule, he was not given respect. Only one family was given respect in Congress. While Sardar Patel proved Churchill's prediction of India being divided into pieces at the time of independence wrong," Shah said.
He further said Patel had built the Somnath temple and said all pilgrimage sites and temples of the country would be renovated. However, due to the Congress's mentality, the temple could not be built in Ayodhya for 75 years. Sardar Patel was against Article 370 and wanted to implement the Uniform Civil Code. His unfinished work has been completed by the Modi government in the last 10 years.
"Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel ji united the country with his unique leadership ability. I am unveiling the statue of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel ji at Circuit House, Jodhpur," he posted from his X handle.
सरदार वल्लभभाई पटेल जी ने अपनी अद्वितीय नेतृत्व क्षमता से देश को एकता के सूत्र में पिरोया। सर्किट हाउस, जोधपुर में सरदार वल्लभभाई पटेल जी की प्रतिमा का अनावरण कर रहा हूँ। https://t.co/Ws2DeYoN3H
— Amit Shah (@AmitShah) December 8, 2024
"Today, Article 370 ceased to exist. Kashmir has become an integral part of India and UCC has been implemented in Uttarakhand. Today, the world's largest monument is in his name," Shah said.
The princely state of Marwar, like Jodhpur, signed the instrument of accession with India four days before Independence, i.e. on August 11, 1947. One reason for this delay was that at that time there were many upheavals in the country. Today all those incidents are in the pages of history. Then Maharaja Hanwant Singh wanted to join Pakistan which worried the people of Marwar as well as political leaders. This whole story tells a lot in itself, the home minister said.
According to Prof Zahoor Mohammad, former head of the Department of History at Jai Narayan Vyas University, Jodhpur, Maharaj Hanwant Singh wanted a special status because he was a clever politician. The reason for this was that the Government of India had said at that time the princely state, with a population of 10 lakhs, could become a separate unit, i.e. could live as a unit. To take advantage of this, Singh made a pretentious effort to join Pakistan, while his father and himself already decided that they would stay back in India. The matter of joining Pakistan is only recorded in the books written by the people of that time, not in the royal family or anywhere else.
A detailed mention of Mewar joining Pakistan can be found on pages 171 and 172 of the Hindi translation of the book 'Freedom at Midnight' by journalists Larry Collins and Lapierre. It mentions that after Maharaja Umed Singh, the command of Jodhpur passed on to Hanwant Singh. At that time, two princely states --Bikaner and Jaisalmer -- were in touch with the Nawab of Bhopal. Nawab's advisor, Sir Zafarullah Khan, met Hanwant Singh and advised him to join Pakistan by saying, "If you join Pakistan, (Muhammad Ali) Jinnah is ready to sign on a blank paper to accept all your conditions".
He also met Jinnah in Delhi, but on the same day, Patel's confidante V P Menon also met Hanwant Singh at the Imperial Hotel. Menon had prepared viceroy Lord Mountbatten to meet Singh. Mountbatten talked to the Maharaja and told him about the relationship between his father and Sardar Patel. On this, the Maharaj agreed to join India. Mountbatten left the room, leaving Menon and Hanwant Singh in the room. As soon as the Maharaja opened the cap of the pen to sign the instrument, it turned into a gun which he pointed at Menon. During this time Mountbatten returned and took the gun from him, which he donated to a museum later.
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