Live: Secularism, Food Bill; PM hard sells UPA in I-day speech

8.04 am: We have to stop communal forces, says PM During the end of the speech, the Prime Minister harped on India’s plurality and in a thinly veiled jibe at the Opposition said that communal forces that disturb the peace of the country should not be encouraged. “Our country belongs to everyone irrespective of caste, creed and religion. We shouldn’t encourage forces that are detrimental to that feeling that the country belongs to all of us,” he said adding that the country needs political stability and social security to move ahead and make progress. It doesn’t take a genius to figure out who he targeted by clubbing the issue of social stability and communal harmony! Maybe that’s the PM’s, albeit diluted way of saying, ‘challenge accepted’! 8.00 am: Singh praises UPA’s Food Security Bill Prior to that, Manmohan Singh peddled the UPA Food Security Bill to the nation saying that it will alleviate poverty like nothing else has prior to this. He had set the tone for the introduction of the Food Bill right at the beginning of his speech by falling back upon his favourite years in the entire history of India - 1991. “Under PM Narsimha Rao we had brought in several economic reforms that stabilised the country’s economy. Then a lot of people had opposed our measures. However, all those policies continued to be in practice because all those people in Opposition realised how beneficial they are,” he said, saying that the food bill is the only answer to the country’s poverty. However, while admitting that the growth rate of the country has significantly dwindled he said that all other countries, bigger economic powers in Europe too are facing similar crisis and the economic slowdown is not typical to India. 7.51 am: Manmohan Singh condemns the Naxal attacks Now the Prime Minister makes a passing mention of the ceasefire violation alongside Naxal insurgency, communal riots and terror threats. “We want to maintain friendly relations with our neighbours. But Pakistan has to stop using its resources to harm us. It has to stop suing its territories to attack us. Recently, they inflicted a cowardly attack on our border,” he said after strongly condemning the Naxal attacks in Chhattisgarh where a former Congress minister was killed. His at best tame mention of the LoC violation and refusal to sound out a strong warning to Pakistan has set him and the UPA government up for more criticism on their foreign policy. 7.31 am: Prime Minister begins his address PM Manmohan Singh begins his address to the nation by expressing condolence for the Uttarakhand flood victims and the sailors who were killed in the INS Sindhurakshak blast. “Our brothers and sisters in Uttarakhand have witnessed severe destruction. We are with them,” he said before thanking the government servants, the defence forces for their relief work. However, he loses no time in applauding the role of his government in helping rebuild Uttarakhand’s infrastructure. “Our government is working hard to rebuild Uttarakhand’s homes and infrastructure,” he says. However, the five soldiers killed on the Line of Control by the Pakistant Army, finds no mention in his speech yet. While their deaths is not any less grave than that of the sailors in Sindhurakshak or the thousands who died in Uttarakhand, mentioning an incident of cross border disturbance might throw processes of diplomacy off tracks. However, it was the PM’s chance to take a strong nationalistic stand by condoling and condemning their deaths during the Independence Day speech, but he chose a route better suited to pleasant diplomatic exchanges instead. 7.18 am: Prime Minister reaches Red Fort After visiting Raj Ghat, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has now reached the Red Fort. He is now accepting the guard of honour to the music of the Army band. Now, the flag is hoisted and PM accepts the 21 gun salute from the Indian Army. [caption id=“attachment_1034997” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] Manmohan Singh.[/caption] While an Independence Day speech is usually something that compels our political classes to look back, sans much political vitriol, at what went into the making of a country, today is different. With the political atmosphere in the country severely charged with more dissent than usual, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s speech will be closely watched, scrutinized and taken apart to further the political discourses of the nation. Both by the ruling party and the Opposition. Especially with Narendra Modi throwing an open challenge at the Prime Minister and declaring he too will address the nation from Gujarat, the Independence Day has turned into yet another political wrestling match.