The Wire Staff 
New Delhi: Madhya Pradesh panchayat and rural development minister Prahlad Singh Patel has said that people have got into the habit of “begging” from government.
Patel, who is also a former Union minister, advised such people to “learn” from those who have sacrificed their lives for the country, reported the Press Trust of India.
“Those who sacrificed their lives for the country…why did they do so? If we try to imbibe their values in our lives, our lives will also be successful, and perhaps we will be able to give something back to the society, ” said Patel on Saturday (March 1) while addressing a gathering after unveiling the statue of Rani Avanti Bai Lodhi at Suthaliya town in Rajgarh district of Madhya Pradesh.
Avanti Bai was the queen-ruler and freedom fighter from Ramgarh, who sacrificed her life while fighting the British rule on March 20, 1858.
“People have fallen into a habit of taking from society. Now, they have even become accustomed to begging from the government,” said Patel.
He added that these days, whenever leaders make appearances amidst the public, they are handed over a pile of demand letters.
“Politicians are garlanded on stage, and then they are handed over a demand letter. This is not a good habit,” said Patel. He added that “assembling an army of beggars” does not strengthen society, rather weakens it.
“The more we are drawn to free things…that is not honouring our brave warriors,” said Patel.
The opposition against freebies
In recent times, there has been a constant barrage of attacks against welfare schemes announced by the government, with individuals at high ranking positions criticising the practice of dolling freebies.
“Rather than promoting them to be part of the mainstream society by contributing to the development of the nation, are we not creating a class of parasite,” a bench of Supreme Court Justices B.R. Gavai and A.G. Masih had said last month.
While BJP leaders such as Patel too have spoken out about this practice, the saffron party has resorted to announcing several freebies in recent elections including Maharashtra and Delhi.