By IANS,
Jind (Haryana) : Calling terrorism a deterrent to growth, Congress president Sonia Gandhi Sunday said here that diplomatic pressure had made Pakistan “reveal the truth” about the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks.
“There are some people who are not able to digest our success. Terrorism could be one of the hindrances which is being created by such evil forces. Terrorism is one of the biggest hurdles for the development of any nation,” Gandhi said addressing a public rally here ahead of the Lok Sabha polls expected in April-May.
She was speaking at the Rajiv Gandhi Mahavidyalaya in Uchana in Jind district, around 220 km from state capital Chandigarh.
“We have the power and we could teach those anti-social forces a lesson. Our patience should not be treated as our weakness. It was just because of India’s diplomatic pressure that Pakistan had to reveal the truth. We will not tolerate any act against India,” said Gandhi.
Pakistan has admitted that elements based in that country were behind the November terror attacks in Mumbai that claimed over 170 lives, including 26 foreign nationals.
About the economic slowdown, Gandhi said India has remained somewhat unaffected by recession. She said, “Despite the financial meltdown in the world, our economy felt less impact and that is because of the progressive policies laid down by our leaders.”
While appreciating the prime minister, Gandhi said, “Our country has developed in all quarters under the able leadership of Manmohan Singh. The implementation of schemes like the National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme and the loan waiver for farmers have given much relief to the downtrodden communities of the society.”
Gandhi said two new ambitious projects were coming up in Haryana. One would be the country’s first National Defence University in Gurgaon, and the other would be the extension of the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in Jhajjar district.
Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda said, “The state education budget has been increased by three times.”
“The state government has also implemented a scheme to give scholarships worth Rs.5,000 million per year for students belonging to the scheduled castes, backward classes and those living below the poverty line.”