Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be conferred with Lokmanya Tilak National Award in Pune on August 1 at a function where NCP chief Sharad Pawar has been invited as chief guest, organisers said on July 10. Mr. Modi has been selected for the award, comprising a memento and citation, “in recognition of his supreme leadership and for awakening the feeling of patriotism among citizens.”
The organisers said Sharad Pawar has been invited to the ceremony as chief guest while his nephew and Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar is among the invitees.
"The Tilak Smarak Mandir Trust (Hind Swaraj Sangh) will confer the Lokmanya Tilak National Award upon Prime Minister Narendra Modi on August 1, the 103rd death anniversary of Lokmanya Tilak," Trust president Deepak Tilak said in a release.
It said India climbed the ladder of progress under the supreme leadership of the prime minister under the concept of Aatmanirbhar Bharat.
"PM Modi awakened the feeling of patriotism among citizens and put India on the global map. Considering his perseverance and efforts, and highlighting his work, the trustees of the Tilak Smarak Mandir Trust have unanimously selected him for this award," the release said.
Other invitees include Maharashtra Governor Ramesh Bais, Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, Deputy Chief Ministers Devendra Fadnavis and Ajit Pawar.
Notably, Ajit Pawar and eight MLAs of NCP joined the Shiv Sena-BJP government on July 2 in a move that shocked State politics.
After Ajit Pawar took oath as Deputy Chief Minister, Sharad Pawar reminded PM Modi of his recent remarks about the "corruption" of NCP leaders and asked him to act against those who are guilty.
"It seems the Prime Minister has exonerated the NCP and all those against whom he had levelled allegations. I am happy today that he gave cabinet berths to some colleagues from NCP. It shows the allegations against corruption were not factual. I am thankful to the PM for this," Sharad Pawar had said.
During an interaction with the Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) booth workers in Bhopal on June 27, Mr. Modi said there are allegations of scams of nearly ₹70,000 crore against NCP, including the Maharashtra Cooperative Bank scam, irrigation scam and illegal mining scam.
At an event in 2016, PM Modi had said that Sharad Pawar handheld him during his early days in Gujarat politics.
