Former Supreme Court judge Justice Madan B. Lokur, former Delhi High Court Chief Justice A.P. Shah and journalist N. Ram on Thursday jointly urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi to a "public debate" on the elections to “strengthen democracy”.

The letter, addressed to Modi at his 7 Race Course Road and to Rahul at 10 Janpath in New Delhi, read: “Dear Shri Narendra Modi and Shri Rahul Gandhi. We write to you as citizens of India, who have performed our duty in the country in various capacities. We approach you with a proposal that we believe is non-partisan and in the larger interest of every citizen....

"During rallies and public addresses, members of both the BJP, the party in power, and the INC, the principal Opposition party, have asked important questions relating to the core of our constitutional democracy."

The letter said: “The Prime Minister has publicly challenged the Congress on reservations, Article 370 and wealth distributions. Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge has questioned the Prime Minister on possible mutilation of the Constitution, electoral bond scheme and the government’s response to China, and also challenged him to a public debate. Both sides have asked each other questions about their respective manifestos as well as their stand on the constitutionally protected scheme of social justice.

“As members of the public, we are concerned that we have heard only allegations and challenges from either side and not heard any meaningful responses. As we are aware, today’s digital world carries with it a propensity for misinformation, misrepresentation and manipulation. In these circumstances, it is fundamentally important to ensure that the public is well educated about all aspects of the debate, so that they can make an informed choice at the ballots — this is central to the effective exercise of our electoral franchise.”

The letter added: “To this end, we believe that citizens would hugely benefit by hearing directly from political leaders through a public debate on a non-partisan and non-commercial platform. It would be ideal if the public heard not just the questions of each side but also the responses.

“We are of the view that this would help to strengthen our democratic process immensely. This bears more relevance as we are the world’s largest democracy and the entire world is watching our elections keenly. A public debate such as this would, therefore, set a great precedent, not just by educating the public, but also in projecting the true image of a healthy and vibrant democracy.”

It went on: “Accordingly, we respectfully request the two of you, as leading voices from the two sides that seek the people’s mandate, to a public debate with each other on the key issues of this election. The venue, duration, moderators and format of the debate could be on the terms agreeable to both sides. We trust you will consider our request positively. We also suggest and only if either of you is unavailable to address the debate, you may nominate a representative to the debate….”

Academic and political scientist Suhas Palshikar termed the letter a “well-intentioned but misconceived initiative”.

He wrote on X: “Well-intentioned but misconceived initiative. BJP has already aimed at Presidentialisation of Parliamentary elections. Nothing suits it more than projecting elections as a plebiscite over the current PM. As such a citizen initiative to legitimise this distortion is avoidable.”