Charkhi Dadri (Haryana): As he pitched for wrestler Babita Phogat, the BJP candidate from the Dadri Assembly seat, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said here Tuesday that Chinese President Xi Jinping has seen the movie Dangal based on her and her father Mahavir Phogat.
Narendra Modi said he got to know this information during the recent visit by Xi Jinping to Mamallapuram in Tamil Nadu.
“Chinese President Xi Jinping during an informal meeting told me with a lot of pride that he has seen the movie Dangal. He also told me that he saw in the movie what wonders daughters were capable of doing,” Modi told the gathering.
Modi said these words from the Chinese president made him feel proud of Haryana.
“Mahre chhoree chhorion say kam hey ke (Are our girls any less than the boys?)” Modi said in Haryanvi, quoting a dialogue from the film.
Babita Phogat, 29, became a household name after Aamir Khan-starrer Dangal, a film about the struggle of her father and noted wrestling coach Mahavir Singh Phogat to train her and her sister Geeta, turned out to be a runaway hit.
Mahavir Phogat told this agency he was proud that the Chinese president liked the movie.
“It felt good when the prime minister talked about Dangal from the stage. When he said the Chinese president has seen and appreciated it, as a father I felt proud,” said Mahavir.
Babita Phogat is pitted against seasoned politicians like Satpal Sangwan of the Jannayak Janta Party (JJP) and Nirpender Singh Sangwan of the Congress. Both have won this seat earlier – by margins of less than 2,000 votes.
Describing the girls of Haryana as ‘dhakad’, Modi said the ‘Beti Bachao Beti Padhao’ campaign would not have been successful without the support of the state’s villages. He said health, self-respect, security and empowerment of women have been the top priority of the BJP government at the Centre.
Narendra Modi, highlighted schemes initiated by the BJP government for women and steps taken to make them financially independent. “The BJP government is taking several steps to further expand the role of women in nation building,” Modi pointed out.
Modi to woo the voters said people of southern Haryana have made contributions from farming to battlefield. “Unprecedented efforts are being made to encourage sports and sportspersons,” he said referring to ‘Khelo India Khelo’ and ‘Fit India’ campaigns. We want more and more people to connect with sports…” Modi asserted.
PTI
