National Conference president Farooq Abdullah on Sunday lauded former Indian Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru over the creation of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO).

Abuddlah said that if Chandrayaan – India’s mission to the moon – has made a soft landing on the lunar surface it is due to Nehru.

“…Today Chandrayaan is there (on the moon) because of Jawaharlal Nehru, who created the (ISRO) organization,” Abdullah said.

Chandrayaan 3, India’s third lunar mission, blasted off from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota on July 14 last year. After about a month, the Vikram lander with the Pragyan Rover successfully landed on the moon on August 23. This made India the first country in the world to land near the lunar South Pole and the fourth country to have a controlled lunar landing.

In his Sunday speech, Abdullah also remembered Nehru’s relations with his father Sheikh Abdullah, saying: “Jawaharlal Nehru put my father in jail for 13 years but I did not say that he did anything wrong. I say that his perspective would be different. I never said that Jawaharlal Nehru did not do anything…We used to beg, don’t forget that…”

The former chief minister also said that the Opposition’s INDIA bloc should come together to save the country.

“”…The INDIA alliance will bring change if people try to understand us. As leaders, we should come together to save India. We need to have big hearts,” Abdullah said. “Give seats to those who can win in their respective areas. India cannot be run alone; we have to run it together…We need to win the hearts of the people…”

He also spoke on the consecration ceremony at the Ram Temple in Ayodhya and criticised the BJP of politicising it.

“Is Ram the god of only Hindus, RSS, and BJP? Is Ram present only in Ayodhya? And to go there, do you need an invitation?” he asked. “Lord Ram belongs to everyone. There are Ram temples everywhere including in Jammu and Kashmir.”

He further said: “Lord Ram resides in our heart, in every particle, but we are not able to recognize him. If we had recognized, there would have been no hatred. Mahatma Gandhi said ‘Ram Raj’, which meant equality. There are 70% Hindus in our country, are they in danger? But it was made to believe that they were in danger…”