Ambedkar Jayanti: Devendra Fadnavis pays tribute to Dalit leader, alleges Congress did nothing to preserve his memories

Ahmedabad (Gujarat): Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis on Sunday paid tribute to Dr BR Ambedkar in Ambedkar on his 128th birth anniversary. After paying homage, Fadnavis alleged that in the past, Congress governments did nothing to preserve the memories of Ambedkar whereas BJP has restored many key places related to the Dalit leader. [caption id=“attachment_6446211” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] Devendra Fadnavis paid floral tribute to BR Ambedkar on his birth anniversary at Sarangpur in Ahmedabad, Gujarat . Twitter/@Dev_Fadnavis[/caption] “I am also delighted that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has made utmost attempts to preserve not only thoughts but also memories of Dr BR Ambedkar. There was a long pending demand of making a memorial at the place where Ambedkar breathed his last but, the past Congress government didn’t acquire even an inch of that place. After I became the chief minister, we got land worth Rs 3,600 crore within three days. Now the construction work is ongoing and by 2020 a grand memorial will be built. The way this government has restored the key places related to BR Ambedkar, be it in Alipur or London, is really significant,” Fadnavis told reporters in Ahmedabad. He went on to praise the social reformist, saying that the constitution made by Ambedkar brought equality in the country and gave everyone a right to live freely. “I believe India’s constitution is best in the country,” he added. Fadnavis asserted that his party will perform well in the Lok Sabha elections, adding that this time, BJP will win more seats than it did in 2014. He also outlined that BJP has done well for preserving rights of the Scheduled Castes. “Whenever there was a need to take decisions for the welfare of the scheduled caste or scheduled tribe, this government has always performed well. The government even made a law to preserve rights of the scheduled caste after a Supreme Court decision.” Today marks the 128th birth anniversary of Ambedkar and is referred to as Ambedkar Jayanti or Bhim Jayanti. Born into a poor Dalit family on 14 April 1891, Ambedkar became independent India’s first law minister, the principal architect of the Constitution of India and a founding father of the Republic of India. Ambedkar, commonly known as Babasaheb, dedicated his life to working for the upliftment of untouchables, women, and labourers.