Rajnath Singh asks students to develop the right 'ethos'; 'Follow APJ Abdul Kalam'

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, while addressing a convocation ceremony at the DY Patil Vidyapeeth in Pune, said people working at both Infosys and Al-Qaeda are educated but it is the ethos that differentiates them. One works for the betterment of society while the other carries out the 9/11 attacks, he said.

To elucidate his point he took the example of former Indian President Dr APJ Abdul Kalam. Singh said that it is the ethos that determines what a millionaire like Osama Bin Laden can end up doing and said that despite being a newspaper vendor, one can become a stalwart like the late Abdul Kalam. 

Students have to work with the right ethos: Rajnath Singh

Citing an article by Thomas L. Friedman, the defence minister said, "People both in Infosys & Al-Qaeda are highly educated & have mission & commitment. But the difference between the two is that one carries out the 9/11 attacks while the other works for society." 

"This is the basic difference between the two which depends on ethos. Despite being a millionaire someone can become Osama bin Laden while despite being a newspaper vendor someone can become APJ Abdul Kalam," Singh added. 

Defence Minister Singh expressed his thoughts on how the value system of the youngsters can ultimately drive what they do in life and said, "We have seen that after taking complex pilot training in the US, young people carried out attacks of 9/11. In India too, there're young people involved in terrorist activities, people who're quite educated." 

'People's trust on politics reducing; curb this mistrust'  

Addressing a social gathering recently, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh had appealed to politicians to not give promises to people at poll rallies or public gatherings as such practices have led to considerable erosion of public trust in the political fraternity. He said, "During poll rallies, I never gave assurances...Due to the difference in the words & deeds of politicians, people's trust in Indian politics & politicians has lessened compared to before. Everyone who's in politics, I request them to curb this mistrust", as he responded to the list of demands handed over to him by the head of the Gomti Nagar Jan Kalyan Samiti.  

Rather, he suggested that politicians should show their readiness to work diligently toward a particular demand and pursue it with all force.  

"Generally during elections, I have refrained from giving assurances to the people. I will try and do whatever I can and I will also see to it that I pursue the matter in all genuineness," he said. 

(Image: ANI)