‘Democracy in our DNA; no place for discrimination’: Modi finally takes questions in presser

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By Our Special Correspondent

New Delhi, June 22: Prime Minister Narendra Modi finally took questions in a presser to mark it a first in nine years since he became the prime minister. He faced two questions, one from an American journalist and another from the PTI scribe.

The first question was predictable, asked by the American journalist, who sought to know about the democratic practices in the country. “World leaders have been speaking of upholding democracy. What steps your government will take in protecting the rights of Muslims and other minorities,” asked the American journalist Sabrina Siddiqui of The Wall Street Journal.

Modi was ready with a detailed answer, as American commentators had been speculating that the U.S. President Joe Biden should probe the prime minister on the issue of democratic values, minority rights, and human rights. Siddiqui became the first journalist to question Modi as the prime minister.

“I am surprised that you say that people claim that we have democracy. Not that people say, we are a democracy, which is in the DNA of our country. Our ancestors have enshrined the values of democracy in our Constitution. There is no space for discrimination,” said Modi.

He further stated that there arises no question of discrimination. Modi stressed that there exists access to all for the schemes of the government. “There is no discrimination in India on the basis of caste, creed, religion, age, or even the land mass,” added Modi.

The joint press conference took place after former U.S. President Barack Obama in a television interview had said that he wished that Biden would speak to Modi on the issue of the minority rights. “India should not be pulled apart…,” Obama had remarked, while speaking on the issue of the minority rights.

But Modi sensing the build up to the presser, which the Indian diplomats reportedly agreed for after marathon negotiation, came up with an exhaustive answer to dismiss any suggestion that there existed any discrimination against the Muslims in India. He reiterated his slogan of ‘Sabka Sath, Sabka Vishwas, Sabka Prayas’ to stress on the inclusive model of governance.

Modi’s second question was a sitter, as the Indian journalist, Kumar Rakesh of PTI, lobbed the soft ball by asking for views on the climate change and that the developed countries have been lacking in transfer of technology and so on. Modi lapped the question to assert that Indian is the only country to have acted on the Paris Accord commitment.