Democracy not just structure, but also spirit: PM at US meet

New Delhi, March 29

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday said democracy was not just a structure but also a spirit. “It is based on the belief that the needs and aspirations of every human being are equally important. That is why, in India, our guiding philosophy is ‘sabka saath, sabka vikas’, meaning ‘striving together for inclusive growth’,” he said, while speaking at one of the plenary sessions of the Second Summit of Democracy hosted by US President Joe Biden.

“India is, indeed, the mother of democracy,” said the PM, while pointing out that the idea of elected leaders was a common feature in ancient India, long before the rest of the world.

Citizens’ aspirations important

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Democracy is based on the belief that the needs and aspirations of every human being are important. That is why, in India, our guiding philosophy is sabka saath, sabka vikas. India is, indeed, the mother of democracy. —Narendra Modi, PM

“In our ancient epic Mahabharata, the first duty of citizens is described as choosing their own leader. Our sacred Vedas speak of political power being exercised by broad-based consultative bodies. There are also many historical references to republic states in ancient India, where the rulers were not hereditary,” he said at the plenary chaired by Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol.

“Whether it is our effort to fight climate change through lifestyle changes, to conserve water through distributed storage, or provide clean cooking fuel to everyone, every initiative is powered by the collective efforts of the citizens of India,” he said at the session on “Democracy delivering economic growth and shared prosperity”.

In the inaugural session, joint opening remarks were delivered by the Presidents of US (Joe Biden), Costa Rica (Rodrigo Chaves Robles), Zambia (Hakainde Hichilema), South Korea (Yoon Suk Yeol) and PM of Netherlands (Mark Rutte). The first Summit of Democracy was held in 2021.