President Kovind speaks

FOR at least three decades now, the President of India’s addresses to the nation on the eve of the Independence Day, as also on the eve of the Republic Day, have been personal statements; that is, these are not vetted by the Council of Ministers and provide an occasion for independent reflections. Since the Emergency days, the President, as the head of the Republic, has come to be seen and respected as someone who would stand apart and, if need be, away from the political regime and its partisanship. For President Ram Nath Kovind, 25th January, 2018, was an opportunity to reaffirm the tradition and expectations of presidential gravitas. And, he rose to the occasion. 

The President’s address was remarkably free of tired and failed shibboleths that the nation has been subjected to these last four years. While enormous progress has, indeed, been made since the birth of our Republic, there is no getting away from the fact that much still remains to be accomplished. And, the President did just that — reminding the nation and all its stakeholders of the abiding importance of republican values and egalitarian promises. In particular, the President was at his sensitive best when he noted that while “we need to craft a modern India that is both a land of talent — and, a land of unlimited opportunities for that talent,” we also need to pay special attention to those weaker communities that “still live at the edge of poverty.” 

  There was a particularly remarkable note in President Kovind’s address: the importance of “disciplined and morally upright institutions.” In this age of personality cult, the President did well to reiterate that “institutions are always more important than the individuals located there”, and, that those who preside over public institutions ought to perform as “trustees of the people”. And, at a time when the State is arrogating to itself the right to interfere in every sphere of the citizens’ lives, it was reassuring to hear the Head of the Republic suggest respect for an individual’s “space, privacy and rights.” Amen.