On Saturday, April 15, Prime Minister Narendra Modi took to Twitter to post a video of some individuals singing bhajans and playing the manjira (hand cymbal) on board a special train to Somnath in Gujarat’s Gir Somnath district. The people who started their journey from Madurai in Tamil Nadu are on their way to attend the two-week-long ‘Saurashtra Tamil Sangamam’ event, which begins on April 17.
While re-sharing the video, initially posted by ST Sangamam, the PM praised the vibrancy and the festive mood around the journey to the Sangamam. “Lovely! The enthusiasm towards #STSangamam is clearly building,” tweeted PM Modi.
Lovely! The enthusiasm towards #STSangamam is clearly building. https://t.co/sKbj5ntMCo
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) April 15, 2023
PM Modi’s words of appreciation infuriated numerous Muslim Twitter users, who landed on his timeline almost immediately to play the victim card.
Islamists declared that Modi harbours prejudices towards Muslims in the country and would have reacted differently if they had offered Namaz in the same way.
“But a Muslim can’t perform Namaz #peacefully,” bemoaned Mohammed Shakir.
But a Muslim can't perform Namaz #peacefully. https://t.co/Cttii94lhH
— Mohammed Shakir | محمد شاكر (@myself_shakir) April 15, 2023
Several other Islamists also towed a similar line, jibing perfectly well with the hackneyed liberal propaganda of portraying the Modi government as the enemy of the Muslims.
Fir namaz par apatti kio
— सैफ हिन्दुस्तानी (@saifhindustani7) April 15, 2023
koi muslim namaj padta to❓️tab aapka ray kya hota❓️
— Alamgir Rahaman🇮🇳🇮🇳🇮🇳 (@alamrahaman) April 15, 2023
If Muslim do the Namaz ?? It's problem???
— Dr.Saleem Sonnekhan. (@salimsonnekhan) April 15, 2023
Some left-leaning ‘liberals’ joined the Islamists to spew hatred by conjecturing that the Muslims would have landed up in jail if they dared to do something like this in Modi’s India.
“Hey Modi, if this act was done by Muslims they would have been end in the jail,” tweeted one @chethankyt.
Hey Modi, if this act was done by Muslims they would have been end in the jail. https://t.co/TXriR00F4w
— ಚೇತನ್ ಕ್ಯಾತನಹಳ್ಳಿ | Chethan Kyathanahalli (@chethankyt) April 15, 2023
“Hope your ಚೇಲಾs appreciate same when Muslim do rather than going in hunting mode modi ಅವರೆ,” tweeted user @PNagarika.
Hope your ಚೇಲಾs appreciate same when Muslim do rather than going in hunting mode modi ಅವರೆ https://t.co/VdXO9JyAvY
— Pragnavantha Nagarika (@PNagarika) April 15, 2023
Gujarat is hosting the Saurashtra-Tamil Sangamam event from April 17 to 26 under the central government’s Ek Bharat Shrestha Bharat initiative which aims to celebrate ancient relations between Saurashtra and Tamil Nadu. The programme will not only look at cultural programmes, but it will also link people through art, food, artisans, education, literature, and sports, to name a few.
Special trains will operate to get people from Tamil Nadu to the state of Gujarat for the event.
Notably, earlier in the day, PM Modi had taken to Twitter to praise the flagging off of the special train from Madurai in Tamil Nadu carrying the first batch of ST Sangamam to Gujarat. The Prime Minister tweeted, “On the special occasion of Puthandu, a special journey commenced from Madurai to Veraval. The #STSangamam is one of the most anticipated events and has created a very positive atmosphere.”
On the special occasion of Puthandu, a special journey commenced from Madurai to Veraval. The #STSangamam is one of the most anticipated events and has created a very positive atmosphere. https://t.co/IDtxHRu6QS
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) April 15, 2023
As part of the Saurashtra Tamil Sangamam initiative to celebrate ancient relations between Saurashtra and Tamil Nadu, a sports festival will be organised in Gujarat under the Olympic associations of the two states. According to an official release from the state government, the sports festival, the Sports Challengers Trophy, will include competitions in tennis, table tennis, kabaddi, swimming and volleyball.
The 10-day event, which will see the Ministry of Education and Culture collaborate with the Government of Gujarat, is expecting invitees between 3000 to 5000.
