- Monday, April 29, 2024
By: Shubham Ghosh
With weeks to go before the two-phase election in the western Indian state of Gujarat, the opposition Indian National Congress has promised to rename the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad to Sardar Patel Stadium after India’s first home minister Sardar Ballabhbhai Patel if it comes back to power.
The stadium, which is the largest in the world, was previously named as Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel Cricket Stadium. It was rebuilt a few years ago after undergoing a complete demolition and played host to former US president Donald Trump and his wife Melania Trump along with prime minister Narendra Modi for the ‘Namaste Trump’ event in February 2020.
Gujarat is set to go to elections on December 1 and 5 with the results set to be announced on December 8.
On Saturday (12), senior Congress leader and the chief minister of the neighbouring state of Rajasthan, Ashok Gehlot, said at the release of the grand-old party’s manifesto for the upcoming elections that it will adopt the manifesto as the official document in the first cabinet meeting if it returns to power in the state.
The Bharatiya Janata Party of PM Modi has been in power in Gujarat for more than two decades now.
The Congress’s manifesto also promised to create 10 lakh (1 million) jobs in the state for all Gujaratis and make 50 per cent reservation for women in government jobs. It also pledged to provide a monthly grant of Rs 2,000 to each woman, widow, and elderly woman in the state.
It also said that 3,000 English-medium schools will be set up if it comes to power and the state’s girls will be given free education till their post-graduation.
