Dream of Swaraj not fulfilled: Advani

Gwalior, June 19 (UNI) Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha and former Deputy Premier L K Advani has said that immortal martyrs' dream of Swaraj was yet unfulfilled.

''If we are given an opportunity, we will fulfill that dream. The British left but the country is still not free from poverty and corruption,'' the BJP leader stressed here last night while addressing a Lakshmibai Balidan Mela to mark the Rani of Jhansi's martyrdom anniversary.

Lauding the Madhya Pradesh government's women empowerment schemes, Mr Advani added that he also wished that a 1857 Revolt memorial be built here.

''It is my desire to visit the samadhi (sepulchres) of martyrs.

We do not realise the true price of freedom until we visit the Cellular Jail at Port Blair. I urge youths to study Veer Vinayak Damodar Savarkar's book,'' he said.

Former RSS spokesman Ram Madhav alleged that History was distorted after independence and certain revolutionaries' true picture was not depicted.

''My government has included lessons on revolutionaries in textbooks,'' said Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan.

Parliamentarian Najma Heptulla alleged that martyrs' memorials were lying neglected in India and abroad.

UNI