'Had Sardar Patel been alive, Kashmir issue would have been resolved'

Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Modi on Tuesday said that solution to Kashmir issue would have been achieved, if Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel would have been alive.

"If Sardar Patel would have been alive, solution to Kashmir issue would have been achieved long back. If Patel was the first prime minister instead of Nehru, the present scenario of India would be something else. Sardar Patel was the architect of India," Sushil Modi told the media, while attending the 'Run for Unity' event here.

Modi also said Pt. Jawaharlal Nehru always ignored Sardar Patel's warnings on China.

"Sardar Patel had warned Nehru many times to be wary of China but he never paid heed to it," he said.

Earlier in the day, Prime Minister Narendra Modi flagged off 'Run for Unity' at Major Dhyan Chand National Stadium in Delhi to mark 142nd birth anniversary of Sardar Patel.

The birth anniversary of Sardar Patel is being celebrated across the country as 'Rashtriya Ekta Diwas' (National Unity Day).