Calling BR Ambedkar "champion of Dalits", Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal today paid rich tributes to him on the occasion of his 125th birth anniversary.
"To call him only a champion of Dalits is to belittle the most outstanding stature of this rare genius. The country owes this very existence as a sovereign, secular, socialist and democratic republic to the Dr Ambedkar's vision and commitment, he said during the ongoing monsoon session in the Assembly.
Alleging Congress of opposing Ambedkar's presence in Constituent Assembly in a bid to avoid a Dalit voice, he said "They even foiled Baba Saheb's efforts to become a Member of the Constituent Assembly from Maharashtra".
He said Ambedkar stands in the league of Martin Luther King and Nelson Mandela due to which "Baba Saheb's 125th Birth Anniversary is being observed by the UNO".
Badal said his government's schemes included 'atta daal', and 'sagun' to provide free treatment, inusrance and free quality education to the children of poor and the backward families, are BJP-SAD's way of paying homage to Ambedkar.
Meanwhile, the Chief Minister today said the SAD-BJP alliance has taken several path breaking initiatives to preserve the cultural heritage of the state.
Paying tributes to the national freedom fighters, Badal said Jang-e-Azaadi memorial will set up at Kartarpur near Jalandhar at a cost of Rs 300 crore.
Similarly, War Heroes Memorial and Bhagwan Valmiki Ji Memorial will set up in Amritsar, Guru Ravidass Ji Memorial at Khuralgarh in Hoshiarpur and Baba Jiwan Singh Memorial at Sri Anandpur Sahib also coming up to keep our people apprise about the glorious heritage of our state, he announced.
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