PM Narendra Modi asserted that there will be no let-up in his govt’s core agenda despite fewer seats in Lok Sabha and flagged the intent to move towards a “secular civil code”, hold simultaneous elections and stick to reforms rollout agenda, without diluting the “war against corruption” which he said he has waged at “considerable personal cost”.
Modi’s 11th Independence-Day address from the Red Fort, was also his longest, running into 98 minutes.
Invoking Supreme Court’s judgments and exhortations to bring in the UCC, Modi said, “Numerous orders have been issued, reflecting the belief of a significant portion of our population - and rightly so - that the current Civil Code resembles a communal civil code, one that is discriminatory.”
Reject laws that divide on basis of religion
As we celebrate 75 years of the Constitution, we must hold extensive discussions on this subject as SC advocates for this change... Laws that divide our nation based on religion and foster discrimination have no place in modern society,” Modi said.
This was arguably the first ever advocacy for UCC from Red Fort and appeared more significant because of BJP’s dependence on allies - TDP & JD(U) - who had diverged with the saffron party on its core agenda. Framing the current scheme of minority communities being allowed to have personal laws as a communal one, PM showed his intent to take on the opposition despite the reduced numbers.
The PM also used his 11th I Day address - a feat managed only by PM Nehru so far - to attack the opposition on a range of issues, from safety of women, a reference to the rape in Bengal, to dynastic politics and efforts to create “anarchy”. He also sent a strong message to Bangladesh over ensuring the safety of Hindus.
Modi sought to stick to the theme of building a developed nation & vowed to “triple the effort” in his third term and work “24x7” for achieving the ambition by 2047.
He did not announce new schemes. Instead, the I-Day speech was laced with instances showcasing his govt’s achievements over the last 10 years while arguing that the results of the changes, including faster economic growth and doubling of per capita income, confirmed that the moves were “in the right direction”.
Although the central message was that the govt was “here to serve each one of you, every family and every region” through 100% saturation of schemes, the PM repeatedly referred to the focus on Dalits, tribals, women, youth and farmers.
But marking a departure from his and his predecessor’s I-Day speeches, Modi sought to address BJP’s core constituency on UCC, amid expectations the party would put it on the backburner due to post-election coalition compulsions.
Similarly, Modi flagged another priority of ‘One Nation One Election’, arguing that frequent polls were creating obstacles to progress, again something which defied the popular assumption that a reduced tally would force him to put on hold a few of his favourite ideas which have been opposed by others.
Without referring to the opposition, he said there was a section that did not appreciate the changes that the country was undergoing and cautioned that they could stall progress.
