139th birth anniversary of Sarda Vallabhbhai Patel,India's first Home Minister Oct 31,2014

 

Prime Minister Narendra Modi was at the centre of a massive commemoration today of  the birth anniversary Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, India's first Home Minister, who belonged, like Modi, to Gujarat. 

"Without Sardar Patel, even Mahatma Gandhi seems incomplete. It was a unique partnership that strengthened the struggle for independence," the Prime Minister said after he placed flowers on a statue of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel in Delhi near parliament.


Dressed in a white kurta pyjama with a red shawl, Mr Modi then walked briskly down one of Delhi's main roads, flagging off a countrywide "Run for Unity" with thousands of participants by his side.

PM Modi at the 'Run for Unity' event in New Delhi to mark Rashtriya Ekta Diwas on Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel's 139th birth anniversary