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Delivering his tenth Independence Day speech from the ramparts of the Red Fort on Tuesday, his last before the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said he believed the responsibility would fall upon him to inaugurate the projects whose foundation stones were being laid now, indicating that the results of next year’s Lok Sabha polls were a foregone conclusion.
Addressing citizens as “mere parivarjan”, or “my family members”, and “mere priyajan”, or “my loved ones”, apart from his usual “mere pyare deshwasiyon”, Modi listed family-run political parties, corruption and politics of appeasement as scourges that could hinder India’s progress during Amrit Kaal, 2022 to 2047, and to its becoming a developed country by 2047. Modi urged the people to create a “mahaul”, an atmosphere, of “nafrat”, or hatred, against corruption and to banish dynastic parties devoted only to “of the family, for the family, by the family”. He said he had pushed his heart and sinew to work for the country in the last nine years.
Modi said he had promised to deliver change in 2014, his government walked the path of “reform, perform and transform,” and the people re-elected him in 2019 based on his performance. Modi said he would furnish his governance report card in his next year’s speech from the ramparts of the Red Fort. Speaking of himself on a few occasions in the first person during his 90-minute speech, the PM reiterated “Modi’s guarantee” that India’s economy will be in the top three of the world during his next term in office. “The next five years of unprecedented development, the golden years to realise the dream of making India a developed nation by 2047,” he said.
The Prime Minister said the country stood with the people of Manipur, and the Centre and the state government were trying to resolve the situation. Modi said women and daughters were disrespected during a phase of violence in Manipur, but there has been news of peace for a few days now.
Modi spoke at length about his government’s welfare schemes, which have lifted 135 million people out of poverty, who have now joined the middle class and stated that the Vishwakarma Scheme, with an allocation of Rs 13000-15,000 crore, for financial assistance of artisans, many of whom hail from backward castes, announced in the 2023-23 Union Budget, will be rolled out next month. He also announced a housing scheme for the urban poor, especially those living in urban slums, and the ambition to make “lakhpati didis” the women-run self-help groups, SHGs.
He said the trinity of demography, democracy and diversity will fulfil the dreams of every India and acknowledged the presence of eight US lawmakers attending the Independence Day celebrations. Modi spoke of the importance of a moment, how India remained enslaved for 1000-1200 years because an invading army defeated the king of a small fiefdom – a reference to Prithviraj Chauhan and the Battle of Tarain in 1192 CE – and that one hour trapped in the country in a thousand years of slavery.
Modi said the politics of dynasty, nepotism, and appeasement has murdered social justice, murdered the aspirations of Dalits, backward castes, tribals, pasmanda Muslims and women, and spoke of his government’s commitment to ‘sarvajan hitaya, sarvajan sukhaya’, for the welfare and happiness of all.
Modi spoke of inflation has taken a toll on countries across the world. He said his government had made great efforts to check inflation, and India was now more successful in reining in price rises. Modi spoke of the money his government has spent on its various schemes and transferred to the accounts of the poor and farmers.
Only Jawaharlal Nehru and Indira Gandhi addressed the nation on more than ten anniversaries of Independence Day. Manmohan Singh addressed the nation on ten occasions.
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