In a rare visual, Prime Minister Narendra Modi shared a stage with NCP Chief Sharad Pawar at the Lokmanya Tilak National Award ceremony in Pune. Modi was conferred with the award in recognition of his “supreme leadership” and for “awakening the feeling of patriotism among citizens”. It has been seven years since the two appeared on a stage together.
Pawar did not entertain requests from members of the opposition INDIA alliance to not share stage with Modi, PTI reported. Shiv Sena (UBT) mouthpiece Saamana said today that the PM being felicitated, and given an award, by Sharad Pawar himself is "a bone of contention".
"Sharad Pawar's personal decision"
Senior Congress leader Prithviraj Chavan on Monday said opposition stalwart Sharad Pawar sharing the stage with Modi at the award event in Pune was the NCP chief's personal decision. Chavan, however, sought to know why a PM was accepting an award from a private entity and asked if it was appropriate.
"I have not come across any sitting PM accepting an award from a private entity. It is misleading to say some earlier PMs have received this award. Indira Gandhi got it posthumously, Manmohan Singh got it when he was Union finance minister and Atal Bihari Vajpayee when he was an MP," Chavan claimed.
He added that it was the prerogative of the private entity to give its award as per its choice. "Tilak was a great freedom fighter. He was linked to the Congress. Our contention is whether the PM should personally accept this award or not from a private entity," the Congress leader clarified.
Meanwhile, defending her father's decision, Supriya Sule told the Indian Express that there is nothing wrong in attending the event as the trust is honouring the country's Prime Minister and not BJP Prime minister.
PM Modi will be the 41st recipient of the award which was constituted by Tilak Smarak Mandir Trust in 1983, to honour the legacy of the freedom fighter Lokmanya Tilak. The award is bestowed upon people who have worked for the progress and development of the nation and whose contribution can only be looked upon as remarkable and extraordinary. It is presented every year on August 1which coincides with Lokmanya Tilak's death anniversary.
