Statue of Unity

Someone asked what is the purpose of creating such a huge statue of Sardar Patel (called Statue of Unity)- a project initiated by Gujarat CM and BJP's Prime Ministerial candidate Narendra Modi. The friend thought that the project was a waste of money and did not serve any purpose even politically. I explained this as follows: 

There are several aspects of this project which are of benefit. First, there is a huge campaign going on for some years to promote Gujarat Tourism. I hope you would have heard that Amitabh Bachchan is brand ambassador of Gujarat Tourism. This statue will create one more iconic site which tourists can visit. Secondly, somehow this Status of Unity will be similar to USA's Statue of Liberty; and hence it announces India's arrival on the global map. I think about it this way... And from the angle of politics, through this project Modi is hitting at the root of Congress party. By highlighting and paying tribute to Patel, he is ridiculing Congress dynasty which started with Nehru. Patel was elected by most Cong members to be its President and deserved to be India's first PM, but Nehru had played games with Gandhi to become PM. So this statue will remind all of us about this unfair decision - and it will help destroy the roots of dynastic rule... So economically or politically this project has many benefits.