Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday talked up Indian democracy at US President Joe Biden’s Summit of Democracy, calling it a civilisational ethos for Indians at a time he is accused at home and abroad of presiding over a democratic backslide.
Modi invoked ancient Indian examples of democracy as he addressed the summit through videoconferencing, asserting that centuries of colonial rule had failed to suppress the democratic spirit of the Indian people.
“It again found full expression with India’s independence, and led to an unparalleled story in democratic nation-building over the last 75 years,” he stressed, seeking to counter the narrative that the architects of the Indian Constitution had imported democracy from the West.
“The India story has one clear message to the world. That democracy can deliver, that democracy has delivered, and that democracy will continue to deliver,” the Prime Minister said.
He claimed India had made improvements in health, education and human well-being at an “unimaginable scale”.
Modi said that while the structural features of a democracy such as multi-party elections, an independent judiciary and a free media were important, the basic strength of democracy was the spirit and ethos that lay within citizens and societies.
“Democracy is not only of the people, by the people, for the people but also with the people, within the people,” he said.
Modi said democratic countries could learn from one another. “We all need to continuously enhance inclusion, transparency, human dignity, responsive grievance redressal and decentralisation of power.”
Modi also suggested working together to shape global norms for emerging technologies such as social media and crypto-currencies so that they were used to empower and not undermine democracy.
Reacting to the Prime Minister’s remarks, the CPM tweeted: “PM talks about democracy and constitution but when it comes to implementation, he & govt have failed in ensuring ethos of the constitution. Arrests of activists, no discussion in the Parliament, motivated appointments are not signs of true democracy PM.”
