Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel gave a message to the world that nobody can destroy the unity and integrity of India, Union minister Amit Shah said on Sunday, on the occasion of Patel's birth anniversary.
Kevadia, where a 182 metre-tall statue of Sardar Patel is located, is not just any place today, it has become a shrine of national unity and patriotism, Shah said here in Gujarat.
Patel's birth anniversary is celebrated as the National Unity Day.
"Sardar Patel gave a message to the world that nobody can destroy the unity and integrity of India," he said.
In a video message on the National Unity Day, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said it is due to Sardar Patel's inspiration that India is today becoming self-reliant in defending itself.
Sardar Patel was the proponent of a country where everybody should get same opportunity and where everybody has the freedom to pursue his/her dreams, he said.