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PM urges Pak citizens to join fight against terror

“Operation Sindoor is an expression of our Indian values and spirit. Those who harbour terrorism could never have imagined, even in their dreams, how difficult it would be to face Modi’s resolve,” Modi said

Published on: May 27, 2025, 07:48:16 IST
By , Ahmedabad
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The people of Pakistan should understand that their government and army are supporting terrorism and must come forward to end the menace, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Monday as he marked the 11th anniversary of him taking oath in 2014 and underlined his government’s development record.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi waves at the gathering during a roadshow in Vadodara on Monday. (PMO)
Prime Minister Narendra Modi waves at the gathering during a roadshow in Vadodara on Monday. (PMO)

On the first day of his two-day visit to his home state of Gujarat, Modi addressed rallies at Dahod and Bhuj, and held road shows at Bhuj and Ahmedabad. This was his first trip to Gujarat since Operation Sindoor, India’s military response to the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack that killed 26 people.

“Operation Sindoor is not just a military action. It is an expression of our Indian values and spirit. Those who harbour terrorism could never have imagined, even in their dreams, how difficult it would be to face Modi’s resolve,” he said at Dahod.

Later in the day, he issued a warning to Islamabad.

“While India believes in tourism, Pakistan considers terrorism as tourism, which is very dangerous for the world. I want to ask the people of Pakistan — what have they achieved? Today, India is the fourth largest economy in the world. But what is your situation? Those who promoted terrorism ruined your future,” Modi said.

He was addressing a gathering in Bhuj town in the Kutch district of Gujarat, which shares land as well as maritime borders with Pakistan. He also launched projects worth over 82,950 crore in Dahod, Bhuj, and Gandhinagar.

“Terrorism is a way of making money for your (Pakistan) government and army. The people of Pakistan must come forward to end terrorism. Live a happy and peaceful life and have your meal. Otherwise, my bullet is there for you,” the PM added.

He also marked the 11th anniversary of taking oath as PM. On May 26, 2014, Modi was sworn in as PM after the Bharatiya Janata Party swept to power in the general elections, ending three decades of coalition politics. In 2024, Modi took oath for the third time as PM on June 9.

“On this day in 2014, I took oath as PM for the first time. The people of Gujarat placed their faith in me first, and then the entire nation joined hands. Since then, I have carried that responsibility with full dedication. We have taken decisions that were once unimaginable and unprecedented... today, India stands transformed, moving forward boldly in every sector,” Modi said in Dahod.

“Today, 140 crore Indians are working hard to make our country a developed country. Whatever is needed for the progress of the country, we should make it in India itself, this is the demand of today’s time. India is rapidly advancing in the world of manufacturing today…Today we are exporting many goods from smartphones to cars, toys, military weapons, medicines…Not only this , today India makes railways, metros and the technology required for it.”

Modi began the day with a road show in Vadodara, where he was joined by the family of colonel Sofiya Qureshi, one of the two women military officers who held briefings on India’s cross-border strikes on terror infrastructure under Operation Sindoor.

His public address in Dahod came soon after he inaugurated India’s first 9000 HP locomotive engine. Modi recalled the time when he used to travel in the tribal dominated areas of Dahod on a bicycle as a party worker.

He also spoke about his government’s outreach to the marginalised communities, and his fight against sickle-cell disease. “Modi worships those who no one cares about. Many communities among the tribals have been left behind, and we have taken care of them too. And for them, the government has made PM Jan Man Yojana, and under this scheme, we are working to provide facilities in the villages, houses, education, employment opportunities,” he said.

Modi launched 24,000 crore development projects, including a locomotive manufacturing plant at the Dahod event. He flagged off the Ahmedabad-Veraval Vande Bharat service and Valsad-Dahod express trains and told the gathering that state-of-the-art Vande Bharat trains were now operational on 70 routes across the country.

“India has become a major railway equipment exporter, supplying metro coaches to Australia, train coaches to England, Saudi Arabia, and France, and railway components to Mexico, Spain, Germany, and Italy. Additionally, Indian passenger coaches are operational in Mozambique and Sri Lanka, demonstrating the global reach of India’s railway manufacturing sector,” he said.

Later in the day, Modi held a roadshow in Bhuj, where he inaugurated and laid the foundation stone for 33 development projects.

“After April 22, I waited 15 days hoping they would act against the attackers. But I realised that terrorism is their bread and butter,” Modi said. He added that once the wait ended, India launched a calculated and powerful military response, authorising precision strikes deep across the border. “Our armed forces went in, carried out targeted operations, and returned without causing any collateral damage. This shows how disciplined and capable our forces are,” he said.

“The (neighbouring) country that came into existence after partition, lives on hatred for India. It only wants to harm Bharat. However, India’s goals are to remove poverty, bring about economic development and become a developed nation,” he said.

Modi said that Operation Sindoor was not just a military mission but a broader campaign to protect humanity and wipe out terrorism. “We realised that sitting here we can reduce these terrorist camps to dust,” he said in his 45-minute long address. The PM said while India targeted terrorist bases, the Pakistan military retaliated.

He asked the young people of Pakistan to rise against terrorism and take back their country. “The youth of Pakistan will have to come forward. Terrorism has ruined your generations. It is destroying your future.”

The PM also praised the development of Kutch, saying the region progressed so significantly that it would now make Pakistan envious. He recalled how the women in Bhuj rebuilt the airstrip during the 1971 Indo-Pak war, enabling critical Indian Air Force operations. The PM said that these women from Madhapar village gifted him a sapling during his visit — which, he said, will now grow at the Prime Minister’s residence.

“India’s fight is against cross-border terrorism and those who sponsor it,” Modi said, asserting that India’s enmity lies with the forces nurturing terrorism, not with the people of any nation.

After Bhuj, Modi held a roadshow in Ahmedabad as he wrapped up the first day of his Gujarat visit. A large number of people stood on both sides of the road to greet the PM even as tableaux based on different themes, patriotic songs and cultural programmes were held during the roadshow from Airport Circle to Indira Bridge.

Operation Sindoor was India’s direct military response to the April 22 terror strike at Pahalgam in Kashmir that killed 26 civilians in what was the worst attack on civilians since the 26/11 Mumbai strikes.

India launched the operation in the early hours of May 7, bombing nine terror camps in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK). The pre-dawn strikes —which killed at least 100 terrorists —sparked a series of attacks and counter attacks across the western border, involving fighter jets, missiles, armed drones, and fierce artillery and rocket duels. In one such counterattack on the night of May 9-10, the air force struck targets at 13 Pakistani air bases and military installations. After four days of fighting, military hostilities were stopped on May 10 as the two nations reached an understanding.

  • Maulik Pathak
    ABOUT THE AUTHOR
    Maulik Pathak

    He is an Ahmedabad-based journalist with more than two decades of experience. His career spans business journalism and general news, with reporting across politics, crime, governance, public policy, business, industry, infrastructure, energy, ports, aviation, the environment, wildlife and social issues. He began his career in feature writing before moving into business journalism, reporting on companies and sectors including energy, infrastructure, pharmaceuticals, automobiles and real estate. Over the years, his work expanded to politics, courts, crime, public policy, civic affairs, the environment and wildlife. His reporting has taken him from government offices and courtrooms to factory floors, ports, forests and remote villages, covering stories that range from industrial investments and financial markets to elections, conservation and issues affecting everyday life. While many assignments demand the pace of the daily news cycle, others require sustained reporting over months and years to follow developments beyond the headlines. He started his journalism career with the Asian Age in Ahmedabad in 2002 as a feature writer and sub-editor. Since 2022, he has been working with Hindustan Times. Earlier, he worked with Business Standard, DNA, The Economic Times, Mint and The Times of India. His longest stint was with Mint, where he spent more than eight years reporting across multiple beats. During his career, he has worked in both reporting and editing roles, contributing to page planning, local editions and special editorial projects as newsrooms evolved from print-first operations to digital publishing. Early in his career, he also worked on media and documentary projects with an NGO and as a copywriter at a communications agency before returning to journalism. Away from work, he sometimes makes time for a pair of binoculars, table tennis, cinema and the occasional poem.Read More

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