India has not attacked any country and neither is it hungry to grab anyone else's territory, but yet its men have had to make the supreme sacrifice for the national cause, PM Narendra Modi said on Sunday.
His comments came in the backdrop of the Uri attack that left 20 soldiers dead and Pakistan's attempts to internationalise the Kashmir issue.
At the inauguration of the Pravasi Bharatiya Kendra, Modi said:
India has not attacked anyone. It is neither hungry for land. But in the two World Wars (in which India had no direct stake), 1.5 lakh Indian soldiers had laid down their lives.
Modi said the Indian community living abroad did not believe in indulging in politics or grabbing power in foreign lands. They, instead, follow the principle of social well-being, he added.
They (NRIs) are like water. They change their colour and shape as per the need.
He lamented that despite having paid so greatly with the deaths of its men in other country’s political wars, India could not make the world realise the importance of its sacrifice. He said whenever he was abroad, he made it a point to visit the memorials for Indian soldiers.
(With inputs from PTI)