Somnath (Gujarat), Jan 11 (AHN) Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched a strong attack on Sunday against those with a "slave mentality" who opposed the restoration of the Somnath Temple in 1951. He stated that such forces continue to employ "evil means" against India.

He pointed out that there were attempts to "whitewash" the religiously motivated attacks for the sake of "appeasement politics", asserting that the history of hatred and cruelty had been concealed from the public.

Taking aim at the "people with slave mentality", PM Modi told the large gathering in Sadbhavna Maidan here, "India has sites like Somnath, thousands of years old, reflecting India's strength, resilience, and traditions. However, unfortunately, after Independence, people with a slave mentality tried to distance themselves from these. They made every effort to erase the history of this place."

Remembering the people who made sacrifices for the protection of Somnath Temple, PM Modi, in his impassioned speech, rallied the crowd, stating, "Unfortunately, those who sacrificed everything for the temple weren't given importance, and some politicians and leaders tried to whitewash the religiously motivated attacks, calling them merely a loot for their appeasement politics. However, Somnath was not attacked just once, but several times."

"If the attack on Somnath was merely economic, it would have stopped after the first big loot 1000 years ago; however, it was attacked time and again. We were taught that Somnath was looted for money. The history of hatred and cruelty was hidden from us," he added.

PM Modi said that those "who are true to their religion, will never support such extremism", but still, some tried to oppose the idea of restoration of the shrine for their appeasement politics.

"But those involved in appeasement politics knelt before the extremist forces. When India got Independence and when Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel took the resolve to restore the Somnath Temple, he was also opposed. When, in 1951, then President Dr Rajendra Prasad came here, it was also opposed. At that time, Swaraj Jam Sahib Maharaja Digvijaysinhji came forward to rebuild it... He donated Rs one lakh at that time for the restoration of the temple," he added.

PM Modi was referring to the time when the then Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru was not supportive of the idea of rebuilding the Somnath Temple and did not want the top constitutional authorities to be associated with it.

Despite Nehru's objections, Sardar Patel, K.M. Munshi (who led the construction efforts), and President Rajendra Prasad became strong proponents of the temple's restoration. The temple was ultimately restored using money collected from public donations and not government funds.

The Prime Minister stated that those who opposed the restoration of the Somnath Temple, harbouring such thoughts, are still present in India and continue to work against it.

"Unfortunately, even today, those forces who opposed the restoration of the temple are still present in India. Today, instead of swords, other evil means are being used against India. This is why we need to be vigilant, become stronger and remain united to defeat every such force that is trying to divide us," he added.

"During the Ram Temple's 'Pran Pratishtha', I present a huge dream of 1000 years for India. I talked about moving forward with the idea of 'Dev to Desh'... Today, every citizen has a strong resolve for 'Viksit Bharat'," he added.

Prime Minister Modi stated that India is "progressing with pride in its heritage". In Somnath, he emphasised that this spirit of pride and heritage continues to evolve. He noted that the cultural development of the Somnath temple, the establishment of the Somnath Cultural University, and the popularity and vibrancy of the Madopur fair -- "all of these elements strengthen our heritage".

"We must make our thousand-year-old heritage known in every corner of the country and introduce the world to our legacy. We must celebrate this new festival of 75 years, and continue celebrating it till 2027, awakening every citizen, so that an awakened nation can move forward to realise its dreams," he concluded.