Citing activist Medha Patkar's opposition to Narmada project, Amit Shah attacks AAP

Ahmedabad, Sep 04: Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Sunday targeted the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and its national convener and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal by claiming some people were trying to provide a backdoor entry in Gujarat politics to social activist Medha Patkar, who had opposed the state's lifeline Narmada project.

Patkar, the founder member of Narmada Bachao Andolan that opposed the Narmada dam project and fought on rehabilitation issues, was fielded by the AAP from Mumbai's North East seat in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections. "These days, some people have made a new start to give Medha Patkar, who opposed the Narmada project, a backdoor entry into Gujarat politics. I would like to ask the youth of Gujarat if they would allow those who opposed the Narmada project as well as the development of Gujarat to enter the state," he said.

Shah was addressing a gathering at the inaugural function of the 36th National Games being hosted by Gujarat a few months before the Assembly elections. "Those who want to bring Medha Patkar, who opposed Gujarat and our lifeline Narmada project and did not let go of any chance to defame Gujarat on every possible forum, should stop here itself. There is no place for those opposing Gujarat," Shah said.

Shah said he had trust in the people of Gujarat, adding that those who had opposed the state will never be accepted by them. Under the leadership of Narendra Modi, who was chief minister of the state, Gujarat had developed in different spheres in the last 20 years, setting parameters that perhaps cannot be broken in the coming decades.

Under Modi's leadership, Gujarat has development of infrastructure like roads and ports, 24-hour electricity supply, and a robust law and order situation. "This all happened because Modiji took Narmada water till Khavda in Kutch. Had Modiji not come to Gujarat as Bhagirath (a mythological figure credited with bringing River Ganga on Earth) and had Narmada water not carried till Kutch, then this development would not have been possible," said Shah.

Incidentally, at a recent function in Bhuj, Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel had called Patkar an "urban naxal", a term often used by some segments of the political spectrum to describe Maoist sympathizers and certain social activists.