Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot on Monday said it was wrong to say that development in the country took place only after Narendra Modi became prime minister in 2014. Saying that it did not take place in a day, the CM lauded the role of previous Congress governments in the development of the country and credited former prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru with laying the foundation for the modern India. The CM also praised the Congress for keeping the democracy strong and said it was only due to it that Narendra Modi could become the prime minister of the country. “Jawaharlal Nehru laid the foundation for the country’s development. The Congress governments contributed a lot towards it. Our democracy is strong because we have kept it like this over the years. Narendra Modi became the prime minister because of it,” he said during a two-day innovation vision programme held to mark the birth anniversary of former PM Rajiv Gandhi. Gehlot praised Rajiv Gandhi for bringing the IT revolution and strengthening the panchayti raj institutions in the country. Recalling 1970s and 1980s, the Rajasthan CM said it used to be a tough task to connect through telephone lines and there were very few colour televisions. Things changed, technological developments took place and the computer era started due to the vision of Rajiv Gandhi, the CM said. “Today you book train, bus or flight tickets on mobile. You need not to stand in queues like people in the past. You can see what is happening around the world and can contact anyone in a short time. This did not happen in just one day,” Gehlot stressed. The Rajasthan CM also exhorted the new generation to take inspiration from visionary leaders like Jawaharlal Nehru, Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi. Praising Mahatma Gandhi for preaching non-violence and getting the country freed from the British rule, the CM said it was unfortunate that violence was taking place in the country where the message of non-violence emerged. He praised the armed formes for surgical strikes against the enemies while maintaining that winning or losing elections was part of a democracy. In the two-day programme in the memory of Rajiv Gandhi, various IT projects and innovations will be on display.
