'Xi Jinping told me he has seen Dangal': Narendra Modi references film at Haryana rally in support of Babita Phogat

Charkhi Dadri: As he pitched for wrestler Babita Phogat, the BJP candidate from Charkhi Dadri, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday said that Chinese President Xi Jinping has seen the movie based on her and her father. [caption id=“attachment_7503241” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Narendra Modi addresses a rally in Haryana. PTI[/caption] Modi said he got to know this during the recent visit by Xi to Mamallapuram in Tamil Nadu. “During an informal meeting, Chinese president Xi Jinping told me he has seen the ‘Dangal’ movie. He also told me that he saw in the movie what wonders daughters were capable of doing,” Modi said. Modi said these words from the Chinese president made him feel proud of Haryana. “Mahre chhoree chhoron say kam hey ke (Are our girls any less than the boys?)” Modi said in Haryanvi. Babita Phogat became a household name after ‘Dangal’ (wrestling ring), a film about the struggle of her father and noted wrestling coach Mahavir Singh Phogat to train her and her sister Geeta, became a runaway hit. The 29-year-old BJP candidate from the Dadri assembly seat is pitted against seasoned politicians like Satpal Sangwan of the Jannayak Janta Party (JJP) and Nirpender Singh Sangwan of the Congress. Both have won this seat earlier - by margins of less than 2,000 votes. Click here for detailed coverage of Assembly Elections 2019 Describing the girls of Haryana as ‘dhakad’, Modi said the Beti Bachao Beti Padhao campaign would not have been successful without the support of Haryana villages.  He said that health, self-respect, security, and empowerment of women has been the top priority of his government. He highlighted schemes initiated by the BJP government for women and steps taken to make them financially independent. “The BJP government is taking several steps to further expand the role of women in nation-building,” he said. He said this Diwali should be dedicated to daughters who are making their families, society, and country proud with their achievements