As he seeks a record consecutive third term in the 2024 Lok Sabha election, Prime Minister Narendra Modi dismissed talks of amending the Indian Constitution, calling it "meaningless", and said he was "very confident of victory" on the back of a record "of solid change in the common man's life". In an interview with The Financial Times, PM Modi said the "most transformative steps" taken by the BJP government, like 'Clean India' mission and digital infrastructure push, were realised through "public participation" and not by amending the Constitution.
Amid allegations by the Opposition and Congress of India's democracy being under threat, PM Modi said, "Our critics are entitled to their opinions and the freedom to express them. However, there is a fundamental issue with such allegations, which often appear as criticisms."
"These claims not only insult the intelligence of the Indian people but also underestimate their deep commitment to values like diversity and democracy...Any talk of amending the constitution is meaningless," PM Modi further said.
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PM Modi On 2024 Lok Sabha Polls, Minorities In India
In the interview with FT, PM Modi touched upon a wide range of topics, including status of India's minority, 2024 Lok Sabha polls and foreign policy.
Exuding confidence after BJP swept the Hindi heartland states of Chhattisgarh, Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh in the recently held Assembly polls, the 73-year-old leader said India was on the "cusp of a take-off" and people "want this flight to be expedited"
"They (people) know the best party to ensure this is the one which brought them this far...Today, the people of India have very different aspirations from the ones they had 10 years back," PM Modi told FT.
On attacks by the Opposition over security of the Muslim community in India, PM Modi referred to the economic success of the Parsees while stressing that the Indian society had no feeling of discrimination towards any religious minority. "Despite facing persecution elsewhere in the world, they (Parsees) have found a safe haven in India, living happily and prospering," PM Modi told FT.
There Is A Whole Ecosystem That Is Using...: PM Modi On Oppn Charges
A repeated allegation by the Opposition has been the use of central investigative agencies by the government to crack down on critics. Responding to it, PM Modi said, "There is a whole ecosystem that is using the freedom available in our country to hurl these allegations at us every day, through editorials, TV channels, social media, videos, tweets, etc."
"They have the right to do so. But others have an equal right to respond with facts," the Prime Minister further said.
The veteran BJP leader said those who doubted his government, would be proven wrong. "In 1947, when India became independent, the British who left made a lot of very dire predictions about India's future. But we have seen that those predictions and preconceptions have all been proven false," he said.