PM Modi inaugurates Kashi Vishwanath Corridor

Whenever an Aurangzeb has arisen in India, a Shivaji has also emerged as the soil of this country is different from the rest of the world, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Monday after he inaugurated the first phase of the Kashi Vishwanath Dham in Varansi. Addressing the gathering, Modi lauded the civilisational heritage of Varanasi, and said many sultanates rose and collapsed but Benaras remained. "Invaders attacked this city, tried to destroy it. History is witness to Aurangzeb's atrocities, his terror. He tried to change civilisation by the sword. He tried to crush culture with fanaticism. But the soil of this country is different from the rest of the world. Here if an (Mughal Emperor) Aurangzeb comes, a (Maratha warrior) Shivaji also rises," Modi said. "If a Salar Masud marches ahead, warriors like Raja Suhaldev make him realise the power of our unity," he said. Modi said the whole new complex of the Kashi Vishwanath Dham is not just a grand building, but a symbol of the "Sanatan culture" of India, our spiritual soul and India's antiquity and traditions. The temple area here, which was only 3000 square feet, has now spread to about five lakh square feet, Modi said. (PTI)