Asked what he would tell those, both within the country and outside, who talk about persecution of minorities, Rijiju said, "We are not bothered by the propaganda. We are concerned about the welfare of every Indian. When the prime minister says 'sabka saath, sabka vikas, sabka vishvas and sabka prayas' means everybody has to be together, they have to be united in every sense."
Minority Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju on Tuesday dismissed as "propaganda" talk of persecution of minorities in India and asserted that "nobody is unsafe" in this country as everybody is taken care of due to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's inclusive approach.
Rijiju, who took charge of the minority affairs ministry, said the ministry will move forward with Modi's mantra of 'sabka saath, sabka vikas'.
Asked what he would tell those, both within the country and outside, who talk about persecution of minorities, Rijiju said, "We are not bothered by the propaganda. We are concerned about the welfare of every Indian. When the prime minister says 'sabka saath, sabka vikas, sabka vishvas and sabka prayas' means everybody has to be together, they have to be united in every sense."
"When the prime minister initiates a scheme, it does not discriminate among anybody on the lines of caste, creed and religion. So, 'sabka saath, sabka vikas' is the mantra. Nobody is unsafe in this country. Everybody is taken care of because of Prime Minister Modi's inclusive approach and policies," Rijiju asserted.
"So, let us not go for any kind of negative propaganda or any kind of unnecessary things which create disruptions. We want to run the government, we want to run the Parliament smoothly and unitedly," said Rijiju, who also holds the Parliament Affairs portfolio.
Rijiju thanked Prime Minister Modi for giving him the opportunity to serve the country through the medium of the Minority Affairs Ministry.
"We will work with Prime Minister Modi's mantra of 'sabka saath, sabka vikas'. We will work to bring all six minority groups of this country into the mainstream by doing inclusive politics and governance. We have to work and move forward with the mantra of 'sabka saath, sabka vikas'," he said.
"We will take steps both inside and outside the Parliament to realise the prime minister's dream of 'Viksit Bharat’. We will not leave any community behind, we will move forward together," Rijiju said.
He also asserted that all have to follow the mandate of the people. Those who have got the mandate to run the government have to do it and those who have got the mandate to sit in the opposition have play the role of the opposition effectively.
Later, Minister of State for Minority Affairs George Kurian also took charge.