Minister of Home Affairs Rajnath Singh said on Friday that the Centre would find a solution to the Kashmir issue and other problems like terrorism and insurgency in the Northeast by 2022.
"There are a lot of problems -- terrorism, naxalism, Kashmir problem. Much is not needed to be said about these problems. But I can assure you this much that by 2022, we have pledged to create a 'new India'... So a solution will be found to all these problems before 2022. We want to assure the countrymen on this," Singh said.
Singh made the statement while addressing a programme called 'Sankalp se Siddhi - New India Movement (2017-2022) Naye Bharat Kaa Nirmaan' in Lucknow, PTI reported. He also administered an oath to the gathering to work towards making India clean, poverty-free, corruption- free, terror-free, communalism-free and casteism-free.
"If people could take (Quit India) pledge in 1942 and get freedom in 1947, then why is it so that after 70 years of Independence, India is not that self-reliant which it should had been? I would congratulate Prime Minister Narendra Modi for taking a pledge to create a 'new India' before the country celebrates its 75th year of freedom," Singh said.
The home minister added that Mahatma Gandhi knew how important cleanliness was and made it a campaign but it was PM Modi who turned it into a mass movement.
"For 85 long years after the first war of Independence in 1857, India understood the country's power and kept on gathering it... In 1942, the entire nation stood united when Mahatma Gandhi said 'British should Quit India' and gave the clarion call of 'do or die'. It was the result of this pledge which bore fruit five years later," Singh said.
He added that if India could achieve independence within five years of the launch of the Quit India Movement, "then why can't we make a 'new India' after taking pledge in 2017 and realising it in 2022?" The Pandavas in the Mahabharata also emerged victorious due to their pledge and resoluteness, Singh further added.
"This (new India) will be an India where there will be no poverty or illiteracy, every person will have a house, no one will die of shortage of medicine. On the global stage, India will emerge as a powerful nation."
The home minister also addressed the issue of corruption saying: "In the first meeting of the Union Cabinet, we took a pledge to fight corruption. Our pledge was to change power and system."
Singh also spoke about the country's biggest tax reform GST rolled out on July 1 this year. He said: "Many of our friends are having problems but after a few months, all will praise GST. We passed GST with the pledge of 'one-nation, one-tax."
Singh added that the BJP does not indulge in politics of government formation "but for nation building and development."
