Since the independence of India in 1947, all the Prime Ministers have addressed the nation from the ramparts of the Red Fort on Independence Day. On this occasion, the Prime Minister of the country underlines all the challenges, determines the priorities and present a new perspective for the future. If you review the speeches of all the Prime Ministers since independence till now, it is known that every Prime Minister has raised issues like rule, foreign policy, economy and national security from their different perspectives.

View change in decades

In the early years after the independence of the country, Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru’s speech on the Independence Day of the Red Fort was focused on issues like poverty, agriculture, education and foreign policy. Despite having so many major issues in front of him, Pandit Nehru used to give speeches for less than 15 minutes on August 15. At the same time, Indira Gandhi’s speeches were longer than Pandit Nehru, but still they were brief compared to the Prime Ministers of her. Whereas Rajiv Gandhi gradually extended the time of giving a speech on Independence Day and he often used to address the name of the country for more than half an hour.

At the same time, on the contrary, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has given long-long addresses from the Red Fort on Independence Day, his speech includes detailed action plans, deadline and year-to-year progress report. His style is completely different from the former Prime Ministers, who often had to face criticism for considering the Independence Day speech as a policy direction to be a formalist.

Business and economy

On Independence Day, the relationship between the government and business in speeches by the Prime Minister has been a repeated subject. Nehru often criticized traders and industrialists in his speeches, accusing them of making profiteering and black market. At the same time, Indira Gandhi also expressed similar concerns. She used to warn against corruption in her speeches and manipulation in the market. Whereas Rajiv Gandhi also talked about limiting the impact of capitalist forces, referring to reforms like nationalization of banks during his mother’s time.

However, the attitude of the current Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been completely different from them. In his speech of 2019, Prime Minister Modi called the money makers as the nation builder and appealed to give respect to entrepreneurship. This step of PM Modi reflects extensive policy changes towards encouraging start-ups and private investment.

Dialogue with the people of the country

The voice of all the Prime Ministers has been different for the citizens of the country. Where, Pandit Nehru often appealed to the people to work hard, avoid being useless and support the government’s initiatives. Many times they used to hold public behavior for lack and inflation. At the same time, Indira Gandhi emphasized the responsibility of citizens in her speeches, but at the same time she also blamed the consumer options for promoting black market.

Whereas Rajiv Gandhi described India’s progress as the result of the leadership of decades and Prime Minister Narendra Modi has expressed confidence in common citizens in his speeches. He has often appreciated the perseverance of the people and placed them at the center of national change.

National security and foreign policy

There has always been an issue of external threats in the speech of all the Prime Ministers given from the Red Fort. There have been issues related to China and Pakistan, especially among them. In Nehru’s speech of 1962 and 1963, the voice of vigilance echoed after the border struggle with China, but critics said that they did not clearly mention the soldiers who martyred for the country.

In contrast, Narendra Modi mentioned the military action in Ladakh in the year 2020 in his speech and paid tribute to the soldiers who were martyred for the country.

At the same time, in the context of Pakistan, many Prime Ministers from Nehru to Manmohan Singh emphasized the need for shared history and peace. But on the other hand, PM Modi’s attitude has been more aggressive than the stance of former Prime Ministers. He has mentioned strict steps against terrorism in his speeches and people from Pakistan-official regions.

Inflation and good governance

The crisis of inflation and lack of food in the country has always been a permanent concern. Nehru and Indira Gandhi often mentioned this problem in their speeches, but there was a lack of concrete measures in their speeches. At one time Indira Gandhi had advised people to grow vegetables in homes to deal with lack of food items. At the same time, Manmohan Singh spoke of giving better prices to farmers in his speeches, but also partially associated inflation with global factors. Whereas Modi launched a welfare scheme like free grain distribution to the people of the country during the Korona epidemic and pointed to strong comprehensive economic grounds.

At the same time, Nehru and Indira talked about responsibility on good governance and accountability, but they were often accused of blaming the public. In his first Independence Day speech in 2014, Modi stressed on transparency and implementation, saying that governments should be tested by their words and actions.

Democracy and leadership style

During the Emergency of the 1970s, Indira Gandhi’s speeches described the suspension of democratic freedom as per the situation. At the same time, Rajiv Gandhi defended democratic institutions in his speeches but also criticized the irresponsibility seen in them. Whereas Prime Minister Narendra Modi has repeatedly described democracy in his speeches and appealed people to end corruption, dynasty and appeasement.

Continuity of inheritance

At the same time, since 1947, many Prime Ministers of the country presented their predecessors differently. Rajiv Gandhi credited India’s progress to a large extent to his family leadership, while PM Modi has accepted the contribution of all governments since independence.

Now on Independence Day, the speech given by the Prime Minister of the country from the ramparts of the Red Fort has not been symbolic. It not only reflects the priorities of each round, but also highlights the changing relationship between the leaders and the public.

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