Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday said he would return to the Red Fort for the Independence Day address next year with greater confidence, pitching for a third term in office, and listed “corruption, nepotism and appeasement” as the three enemies of the nation.

Making the last Independence Day address before the next general election, Modi sought to exude confidence that he would return as Prime Minister for a third straight term when the country votes next year.

“Next August 15, from the same Red Fort, I will present in front of you the achievements of the country, your capacity, and the progress achieved through that...
with more confidence,” Modi said.

In a departure from the past, Modi addressed the people as “mere pyare pariwarjano (my dear family members)” as he aggressively sought to project that there was no other alternative to him, claiming that he was using every moment of his life for the country.

“I come from among you, I live for you. Even my dreams are about you. When I sweat, it’s for you. I am doing this not because you have given me this responsibility but because you are my family and I cannot see you suffering,” he said, using a panoply of gestures to stress his commitment.

He said the “mood for change” had brought him to power in 2014, “performance” gave him a second term in 2019 and the next five years would be focused on “unprecedented development”.

Listing “corruption, nepotism and appeasement politics” as enemies of the development of the country, Modi launched a scathing attack on his rivals.

Modi claimed that the root of all problems plaguing the country was “corruption”, stressing that it was “hollowing the country out like a termite”.

“It is Modi’s commitment to fight against corruption. We have to create an environment of hatred against corruption like the hatred against filth. There cannot be anything filthier than corruption,” he said and stressed how money looted was being recovered by the agencies and cases were being filed against the corrupt.

“The second enemy is nepotism. It has snatched away the rights of the people, and the third is appeasement,” he said.

In his 2022 Independence Day speech too, Modi had focused extensively on “corruption and nepotism”, saying they were enemies of the nation and vowed to wage a decisive battle against them. In his rallies too, the twin issues form a major weapon to attack his political rivals.

The addition this year is “appeasement”. However, the BJP has been using it for decades to sharpen the polarising card.

Modi said “appeasement” had destroyed “social justice” — seen as an attack on Mandal parties like the RJD, JDU, SP and others who pitch their politics on the slogan of “social justice” or fighting for the rights of the sections that have been deprived by the caste hierarchy.

By slamming “appeasement”, he obliquely accused his political rivals of neglecting not only the poor and deprived among the majority community but also the “Pasmandas” ( backwards) in the Muslim community.

Modi’s speech was filled with a pitch for the dream of making India a developed nation in 2047, stressing that it would become a reality.

Facing accusations of refusing to speak and not giving preference to the conflict in Manipur, Modi spoke about the state at the beginning of his 90-minute speech from the Red Fort. In the Lok Sabha, he had touched on Manipur only towards the end of his over two-hour reply.

“In the Northeast, particularly in Manipur, a period of violence ensued, many people lost their lives, disrespect has been shown to the honour of mothers and daughters,” he said.

“But for a few days now, news of peace is coming. The country is with the people of Manipur. Peace will only help resolve the situation,” he added.

Touching briefly on rising inflation and unemployment, Modi said that his government was working to bring relief to the people and at the same time sought to sweep them aside by conjuring up a bright future for the country.

“This is a new India, an India full of self-confidence. This is an India that is working hard to turn resolutions into reality...,” the Prime Minister said.

● A version of this report appeared in the epaper on Wednesday