Modi in Lok Sabha: If Vallabhbhai Patel was our first PM, entire Kashmir would've been ours, says PM

Prime Minister Narendra Modi today launched a scathing attack on Congress, saying the grand old party served only one family in seven decades of independence and if it had allowed Vallabhbhai Patel to become the first Prime Minister of India, the entire Kashmir would have been ours. "Congress members wanted Vallabhbhai Patel as the first Prime Minister of the country, but you (Congress) imposed Jawaharlal Nehru. If  Vallabhbhai were elected as our first Prime Minister, there would be no Kashmir problem today," the Prime Minister said. PM Modi touched upon various issues -Democracy, Aadhaar, NPAs, job crisis- in an hour-long address. Reacting to the Prime Minister's speech in the Lok Sabha, Congress President Rahul Gandhi said that it was political speech but country wanted to hear him on Rafale deal and job crisis. The PM's speech comes two days after BJP chief Amit Shah made his maiden speech in the Rajya Sabha and praised a lot of the initiatives undertaken by the Centre. 

LIVE UPDATES:

01:15 PM: I know the government's efforts to eliminate corruption and black money are hurting a select group of people. Today, people who served as Chief Ministers are in jail. However powerful one was, if one has been corrupt, that person will be punished. We are in an era of honesty: PM Modi.

01:10 PM: India's middle class desires good education facilities, affordable housing, good infrastructure. They want 'Ease of Living' which we are committed to providing: PM Modi.

01:08 PM: When the corrupt and middlemen are out of work, obviously the Congress will be unhappy: PM Modi.

01:05 PM: When our government took office in 2014, the chorus from the opposition was - Modi will scrap UIDAI but when we made Aadhaar more effective in terms of enabling better and effective service delivery, suddenly the opposition began opposing Aadhaar: PM Modi.

12:59 PM: Our government had the opportunity to prepare an aviation policy that focuses on smaller cities, towns so that more Indians can fly: PM Modi.

12:56 PM: The way people of Rajasthan were misled about the Barmer refinery was appalling. Just for votes, lies were said. It is in the last three years that the Government of India and the Rajasthan Government worked together to sort out the pending issues: PM Modi

12:54 PM: The approvals by the BJP Government in Karnataka made it possible to work quickly on the rail line. We do not bother who is the local MP or MLA, which party they belong to. We serve the nation and care for 125 crore Indians: PM Modi

12:52 PM: Since Kharge Ji spoke about railways and Karnataka, let me tell the truth about the Bidar-Kalburgi rail line. The project was approved by the Vajpayee

12:50 PM: Government and from 2004 till 2013 nothing was done. It is when a Government under BJP gave approvals work could begin: PM Modi

12:48 PM: More villages are getting optical fibre network in the last three years than they got previously. This is the transformation happening: PM Modi

12:46 PM: The NDA government is building more roads than the previous one. We have given a strong boost to the infrastructure sector across the nation: PM Modi

12:44 PM: The NDA Government has changed the work culture in the nation. Projects are not only thought about well but also executed in a timely manner: PM Modi

12:42 PM: In December, did we witness an 'election' or coronation for the post of Congress President? One youngster raised his voice about this and you (Congress) ousted him from the party: PM Modi.

12:41 PM: Congress members wanted Vallabhbhai Patel as the first Prime Minister of the country, but you imposed Jawaharlal Nehru. If  Vallabhbhai were elected as our first Prime Minister, there would be no Kashmir problem today: PM Modi

12:40 PM: We cannot forget how the Congress insulted Shri Neelam Sanjiva Reddy, a proud son of Andhra Pradesh. They humiliated him. Nobody in India needs lessons on democracy from the Congress Party: PM Modi.

12:35 PM: How can one of the leaders say India got a democracy due to Pandit Nehru and the Congress Party? Is this their reading of India's history? What arrogance is this: PM Modi.

12:30 PM: Those who say Former Prime Minister Nehru gave us democracy, they should be ashamed of themselves. Democracy is in our blood: PM Modi

12:28 PM: If you would have made right policy decisions, the people of this country had the capability to take this country forward: PM Modi 

12:25 PM: You (Congress) governed this country when there was no opposition, no television, no radio but you spent all these years serving one family:  PM Modi

12:22 PM: Not a single day passes when the people of this country do not bear the burden of misdeeds in last 70 years: PM Modi

12:20 PM: It is in your characteristics, when you partitioned this country you divided this nation: PM Modi

12:18 PM: For decades, one party devoted all their energies to serving one family. The interests of the nation were looked over just for the interests of one family: PM Modi.

12:16 PM: I see that whenever we are criticised by select Opposition parties, substance is lacking. They go back to saying- when we were in power....This is the same party that divided India: PM Modi.