PT Usha, Ilaiyaraaja express gratitude to PM Modi for nomination to RS

After getting nominated to the Rajya Sabha, athlete PT Usha and music maestro Ilaiyaraaja on Wednesday expressed their gratitude to Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

PT Usha is the only woman out of the four members nominated for Rajya Sabha. While Ilaiyaraaja belongs to the Dalit community.

Usha tweeted, "Deeply touched by your kind words Sir. My sincere gratitude on being nominated to the Rajya Sabha. I will always give my best to any responsibility bestowed on me, and work towards the betterment of all of us Indians. Jai Hind."

While Ilaiyaraaja said, "I express my sincere gratitude for the thoughts Narendra Modiji It is an honour and opportunity to make the beauty of music, art and culture reach the length and breadth of our society."

Earlier on Wednesday, PM Modi shared the news of PT Usha and Ilaiyaraaja being nominated to the Rajya Sabha and Congratulated the two legends on Twitter.

"The remarkable PT Usha Ji is an inspiration for every Indian. Her accomplishments in sports are widely known but equally commendable is her work to mentor budding athletes over the last several years. Congratulations to her on being nominated to the Rajya Sabha," tweeted PM Modi.

"The creative genius of Ilaiyaraaja Ji has enthralled people across generations. His works beautifully reflect many emotions. What is equally inspiring is his life journey- he rose from a humble background and achieved so much. Glad that he has been nominated to the Rajya Sabha," he added.

Centre on Wednesday nominated four new members to Rajya Sabha who represent various South Indian states including PT Usha, Ilaiyaraaja, Veerendra Heggade, KV Vijayendra Prasad, said a press release.

The four nominated members include a woman, a Dalit, and a member of a religious minority (Jain community), added a statement.