Raipur. State Congress President Deepak Baij hoisted the flag at the State Congress Headquarters Rajiv Bhawan and also addressed the Congressmen on this occasion. State Congress President Deepak Baij said in his address that Happy Independence Day to all of you!
Friends, today we are all celebrating the holy festival of our independence. This tricolor fluttering on this occasion of the anniversary of independence is not only a symbol of our self-respect and honor, but it also reminds us of those struggles of the freedom struggle in which our freedom fighters sacrificed everything. It reminds us of the sacrifice, penance, sacrifice and struggles of our heroes of the freedom struggle. The goal of India’s freedom struggle may not have been achieved through armed struggle, but the sacrifice of great heroes like Shaheed Mangal Pandey, Rani Lakshmibai to Shaheed Bhagat Singh, Ashfaqulla Khan, Ramprasad Bismil, Chandrashekhar Azad, Veernarayan Singh strengthened the spirit to achieve the goal of the freedom struggle. Countless great men like Mahatma Gandhi, Pt. Jawaharlal Nehru, Subhash Chandra Bose, Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, Lala Lajpat Rai, Lokmanya Bal Gangadhar Tilak, Gopalkrishna Gokhale, Pt. Motilal Nehru, Deshbandhu Chittaranjan Das, Babu Rajendra Prasad, Dr. Sarvapalli Radhakrishnan, Dr. Bhimrao Ambedkar, Sarojini Naidu, Acharya Kripalani, Lal Bahadur Shastri, Maulana Abul Kalam Azad made many efforts to achieve independence and they became the flag bearers of our freedom struggle.
After independence, India had a big challenge to establish itself as a strong, self-reliant and democratic state. We are proud that the Congress Party government did this work very well under the leadership of the country’s first Prime Minister, Pt. Jawaharlal Nehru. Whether it was to unite a country divided into princely states or to establish India as a sovereign democratic republic or to establish reputed institutions like Bhakra Nangal Dam, Hirakund Dam, huge steel plants, Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Indian Institute of Management (IIM), All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), ISRO, SAIL and other nine-ratna companies, the foundation of a strong India was laid. After Pandit Nehru, the Congress Party Prime Ministers Shri Lal Bahadur Shastri, Smt. Indira Gandhi, Shri Rajiv Gandhi, Shri Narasimha Rao, Dr. Manmohan Singh took independent India to the status of developed India. The result of the strong foundation laid and the plans made during the rule of the Congress is that today we stand before the world as a strong nation.
Friends, it is with great sadness that I have to say that today our Constitution and constitutional values are being attacked. The civil rights granted by the Constitution and constitutional institutions are being attacked in a planned manner. At such a time, the role of the Congress Party increases to protect the country’s democracy and the constitutional values of India. We are proud that our leadership understands this responsibility very well. Under the leadership of our former president Mrs. Sonia Gandhi, our president Mallikarjun Kharge, Rahul Gandhi, the Congress is constantly raising the voice of the people of India. During the Lok Sabha elections too, there were talks of changing the Constitution, but the aware people of the country foiled the intentions of the anti-constitutional elements.
Friends, at this time the democracy of the country is facing a new challenge. The Congress Party, under the leadership of our leader Mr. Rahul Gandhi, is fighting to save the fairness of the election system of India and the Constitution and the constitutional provisions. It is a matter of concern that for the last few years, the functioning of the Election Commission has been under suspicion. Manipulation is being done in the voter lists. After the results of the Maharashtra elections, the suspicion of vote theft has turned into belief. The evidence presented by the Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, after analysing the irregularities in the voter list is serious and there is a big question mark on the fairness of the election system of the country. To save India’s democracy and electoral system, it is necessary that the questions raised by the Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi be thoroughly investigated and strict action be taken against whoever is guilty in the entire episode.
