Gadkari bats for plain-speaking, says politics not about lying or flattery

Union minister Nitin Gadkari on Friday said it was a misconception that lying and flattery are necessary in politics, asserting that politicians should speak the truth with confidence.

The senior BJP leader was speaking after being conferred the Lokmanya Tilak National Award in Pune in the presence of Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis and deputy chief ministers Eknath Shinde and Ajit Pawar.

"It is a misconception that politics is all about telling lies or using flattery. Even late Shiv Sena chief Balasaheb Thackeray used to be truthful in his speeches. He used to speak his mind," Gadkari said. One should learn to call a spade a spade, he said.

"If something is good, one should call it good, and if something is bad, it should be termed as bad. Fadnavis says sometimes speaking clearly and truthfully is not possible in politics. During my (campaign for) Lok Sabha election, while addressing a rally, I said I won't give any freebies to anyone and will do what I wanted to do....do not come to me under the guise of caste or community. I simply sought their votes and assured them that I will work for them," he said.

He also told the voters that he would work for everybody, those who vote for him as well as those who do not, Gadkari added.

"I have this experience that even small people can sense good things, and that is why politicians should remain positive and always speak truth with confidence," he said.

The minister of road transport and highways also said there was no dearth of funds in his department.

"Funds are not a constraint. The only constraint is that they are not being spent. In this country, there is no dearth of funds, technology. The only constraint is the lack of people who will work honestly for the country. If these people decide to work, then there will not be any problem," Gadkari said.

The Lokmanya Tilak National Award is conferred by the Lokmanya Tilak Smarak Trust (Hind Swarajya Sangh) every year. Its past recipients include Prime Minister Narendra Modi and late Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee.