PM Highlights India’s Resolve and Self-Reliance at Somnath Event

PTI, May 11, 2026, Somnath: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday drew parallels to the 1998 Pokhran nuclear tests, asserting that no power in the world can make India bow or succumb under pressure.

Addressing a gathering at the Somnath Amrut Mahotsav, marking 75 years of the inauguration of the restored temple dedicated to Lord Shiva, he also said that “forces” in the country continue to prioritise appeasement politics over national self-respect.

A similar mindset was witnessed during opposition to the construction of the Ram temple in Ayodhya, the Prime Minister noted.

“While India attained Independence in 1947, the Pran Pratishtha (consecration ceremony) of Somnath in 1951 served as a proclamation of India’s liberated consciousness,” he said.

The Prime Minister stressed that the ‘Amrut Mahotsav’ of Somnath is not merely a commemoration of the past, but it is also a festival of inspiration for India for the next thousand years.

May 11 is a significant date as it not only marks the consecration of the Somnath temple, but also India’s nuclear tests in 1998 under the leadership of then Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, he said.

“On May 11, 1998, the nation conducted its nuclear tests. Our scientists demonstrated India’s capabilities and potential to the entire world,” Modi pointed out.

The tests “sent shockwaves across the globe” and triggered angry reactions from several countries, he recalled.

“Who is India to conduct nuclear tests? The world reacted with anger,” Modi said, referring to the international response following the Pokhran tests.

He said global powers then tried to isolate India through sanctions and economic pressure after the tests.

“Global powers mobilised to suppress India. Various sanctions were imposed, and every passage to avert a potential economic crisis was blocked,” the Prime Minister mentioned.