Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Sunday that the British rulers tried to show Indian society in bad light due to orthodoxy and "social evils" of Hinduism.
An education system based on Indian values is therefore need of the hour, he added.
The Indian prime minister made the remarks while virtually addressing an event to mark the 200th birth anniversary of Arya Samaj founder Swami Dayanand Saraswati at his birth place in Tankara, in the Morbi district of Gujarat state.
Modi further stated that Arya Samaj schools have been the centre for promoting education based on Indian values.
“The British government tried to humiliate us by using our social evils as a pawn. The British rule was then justified by some people by citing social changes,” Modi stated, while adding that Swami Dayanand Saraswati at that time showed Indians how their orthodoxy and social ills had harmed them and had advocated for the equal rights for women in the society.
“The country is now expanding it through the National Education Policy. It is our responsibility to connect the society with these efforts," he said.
Swami Dayanand Saraswati was born in Tankara on 12 February, 1824, and devoted his entire life to pursuing Vedic knowledge and cultural heritage. Through his ideas and messages he motivated society towards prosperity, freedom and equality.