BJP turns 36, Shah harps on nationalist identity

Asking party workers to protect and carry forward the Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) “nationalist” identity, its chief Amit Shah on Wednesday cautioned them against complacency and said that they should ensure that the party emerges victorious “from panchayats to Parliament” in the next 25 years.

Addressing party workers on the completion of 36 years of the party’s formation, Shah said: “The BJP’s identity is that of a nationalist party and it is the responsibility of our generation to take this identity forward. It is our responsibility to protect this nationalist identity.” 

He added: “What the BJP is today is due to the sacrifices made by three generations of party workers, who worked to protect the ideology and ‘Bharat Mata’. BJP workers should remember this and not let the sacrifices be frittered away.”

“We should not lose out on our unique identity. For us, power is not a purpose, but a means,” said Shah, who started and ended his slogan with “Bharat Mata ki Jai”. He asked the party workers to empower the poor and asked them to help light a lamp in the life of every poor by helping them benefit from the social security initiatives and schemes started by the government.

“We do not do politics of cunningness, but of character,” he said, asking partymen to strive in being a bridge between the people and the government.

Shah said the party is fortunate to have the leadership of Narendra Modi, whom he described as “the most popular leader in the world”. “I consider our workers today as very fortunate that they are working for a party at the time when it is at height of success. But friends, it is our responsibility not to make or consider it as a pinnacle, but to take the party to greater heights. If we consider this success as a pinnacle and think the party has reached great heights, there will be complacency,” Shah said.