"Citizens' Responsibility To Take Care Of Public Property": PM On CAA Protests

PM Modi unveiled a statue of former PM Atal Bihari Vajpayee at the Lok Bhawan here. He also laid the foundation stone for the Atal Bihari Vajpayee Medical University in the Uttar Pradesh capital.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi. (PIC/PTI)

Lucknow (Uttar Pradesh): Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday said it is citizens' responsibility to take care of public properties and not destroy them. Speaking at an event in Lok Bhawan on the violent protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act, Modi said, "People who damaged public property and were involved in violence in the name of protest in Uttar Pradesh, should introspect if what they did was right." Modi urged people to not fall prey to rumours. Modi said the legacy problems in the country included Article 370, Ram temple issue and Citizenship Amendment Act. "We have solved some of the problems that we got as legacy...We will challenge the challengers," he said, adding the way to give citizenship to refugees from Pakistan, Bangladesh, Afghanistan has been cleared. The prime minister lauded the the Uttar Pradesh police for doing a "good job". "Better roads,transport & sewer are our rights, but it's our duty to protect it. Quality education is our right but safety of educational institutions & respect for teachers are our duties. Secure atmosphere is our right, but it's also duty of citizens to respect work of police," he added. Uttar Pradesh has witnessed a spate of violence in the last week over the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA). The prime minister's statement comes after reports emerged of around 28 people in UP's Rampur being sent notices by the district administration, seeking recovery for the damage caused in the violence during protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act. Taking a stern stand, the Yogi government has reportedly sought a recovery of Rs 14.86 lakh for the damages caused to public properties. Earlier, Modi unveiled a statue of former PM Atal Bihari Vajpayee at the Lok Bhawan here. He also laid the foundation stone for the Atal Bihari Vajpayee Medical University in the Uttar Pradesh capital. The state government has given 50 acres of land for the varsity. The event coincided with the birth anniversary of Vajpayee, who represented Lucknow in the Lok Sabha five times.