Basti, October 4: Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath said on Wednesday that the Arya Samaj was the first to respond to the religious conversions, which were taking place on a large-scale in the country, by organising homecoming of the converted.
Addressing the Golden Jubilee Mahotsav program of Arya Samaj organized by Arya Samaj Basti at Hotel Balaji, Yogi said: “When the British imposed the policy of appeasement on Indians, Arya Samaj started the Vedic movement in the country. Arya Samaj has been a vibrant movement in India. There was a time when Arya Samaj was dominant from Basti to Karachi.”
The Chief Minister added that he Arya Samaj carried forward its Swadeshi programme and stood firmly against untouchability prevalent in the country during those times.
According to him, the Arya Samaj’s movement gave birth to many revolutionaries, including Pandit Ramprasad Bismil, the great leader of Kakori Action. Yogi said that Pandit Ramprasad Bismil was a product of Arya Samaj, who worked as a preacher in Sanjhapur. Every revolutionary of that time felt proud to be associated with Arya Samaj, he pointed out.
“Maharishi Dayanand Saraswati, the founder of Arya Samaj, connected education with values on the one hand, and modernity on the other. The DAV was once considered one of the most prestigious educational institutions in the country, where the day started with Vedic prayers and Havan Yagya”, CM Yogi remarked further. He said that the whole of India is joining to pay homage to Maharishi Dayanand Saraswati, the pioneer of the era, on his 200th birth anniversary.
CM Yogi said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had inaugurated the centenary year programme of Maharishi Dayanand Saraswati from the country’s capital Delhi a few days ago and had tried to awaken millions of Arya heroes spread across the country and the world through the event.
He added that the 150th year of the establishment of Arya Samaj will start from next year, marking an important event in the history of our country and our society. “During this time, we have to inspire our youth to do research on the works of Arya Samaj. Through this our present generation will be able to know about the contribution of Arya Samaj”, Yogi asserted.
MSME Minister Rakesh Sachan; Legislative Council member Subhash Yaduvansh; District Arya UP Pratinidhi Sabha Basti President Om Prakash Arya; General Secretary, Delhi Arya, Pratinidhi Sabha, Vinay Arya and other dignitaries attended the programme.