Since becoming the Prime Minister of India in 2014, Narendra Modi has never attended a press conference in his country. However, he took part in a joint media conference with President Joe Biden during his June 20-24 (2023) visit to the US. Standing on American soil, Prime Minister Modi avoided addressing specific questions, and stressed on the importance of Democracy! In presence of President Biden, he stressed: “Democracy is in our DNA. Democracy is our spirit. Democracy runs in our veins. We live Democracy. And our ancestors have actually put words to this concept, and that is in the form of our Constitution.“

The visiting Indian Premier made this claim in response to an American journalist’s pointed question on religious discrimination in the South Asian nation. PM Modi said: “Our Government has taken the basic principles of Democracy. And on that basis, our Constitution is made and the entire country runs on that – our Constitution and Government. We have always proved that Democracy can deliver. And when I say deliver, this is regardless of caste, creed, religion, gender. There’s absolutely no space for discrimination.”

Interestingly, Prime Minister Modi did not say anything about Freedom of Press, one of the pillars of Democracy. According to sources close to the Indian Ministry of External Affairs, the PM did not want to address a press conference during this visit to the US. However, the Biden Administration had a different plan for its Indian guest, who had to attend the conference. Perhaps, PM Modi was well aware of the fact that the US media would ask him about the religious discrimination in India.

No matter how high the excitement was in India and the US over Modi’s visit, diplomatic circles believe that there was immense pressure on the Democrat Government in Washington DC regarding this trip. Various Government and Non-governmental Organisations in the US have prepared reports on various issues, like Human Rights, Secularism, Minority Rights, etc., in India. As expected, media persons also asked President Biden to share his views on violations of Human Rights in India during Modi’s tenure as the Prime Minister.

Ahead of the press conference, the US President claimed that religious pluralism was the Core Principle for both India and the US, stating: “Equity under the law, freedom of expression, religious pluralism and diversity of our people – these core principles have endured and evolved.” He further said: “Even as they have faced challenges throughout each of our nations’ histories, and will fuel our strength, depth and future.” When asked whether he discussed Human Rights, Secularism, Minority Rights and other sensitive issues with Prime Minister Modi, the President replied that they concentrated mainly on bilateral trade and defence ties, as the two Democracies were worried about challenges from a rising China. “I have long believed that the relationship between the US and India will be one of the most defining relationships of the 21st Century,” he told the press. President Biden avoided the fact that Prime Minister Modi faced criticism over the rights of religious minorities in India. Various Rights Groups have alleged that the Modi Government turns a blind eye to vigilante violence against Muslims and Christians.

It may be noted that different organisations and Indians, living in the US, staged protests against Prime Minister Modi for his Government’s poor performance during his visit. They wanted President Biden to raise the issue of Minority Rights in India during his talks with the visiting Prime Minister. Former US President Barack Obama said that raising concerns about Indian Democracy must also enter into diplomatic conversations. He told CNN: “Part of my argument would be that if you do not protect the rights of ethnic minorities in India, then there is a strong possibility India at some point starts pulling apart. And, we have seen what happens when you start getting (into) those kinds of large internal conflicts.”

Obama believes that meeting with dictators or other anti-democratic leaders is a complex facet of the US Presidency. “Look, it is complicated. The President of the United States has a lot of equities. And when I was President, I would deal with figures in some cases who were allies, who, you know, if you pressed me in private, do they run their Governments and (political) parties in ways that I would say are ideally Democratic? I would have to say no,” he stated.

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Published by Koushik Das

Koushik Das (born on May 16, 1976 in Kolkata) is a career journalist. Based in the Indian capital of New Delhi, Koushik writes mainly about foreign policies and current geopolitical issues, and rarely about other topics. His own political ideas are highly influenced by Antonio Gramsci, Louis Althusser, Michel Foucault, Michael Oakeshott and others. English philosopher and political theorist Oakeshott (Dec 11, 1901-Dec 19, 1990) says that “in political activity, men sail a boundless and bottomless sea. There is neither harbour for shelter nor floor for anchorage, neither starting-place, nor appointed destination. But we have to keep afloat”. (Rationalism in Politics, 1962) As a student of Political Science, Koushik loves to share his views on issues, which have great impacts on his thought process (and also on India, South Asia and of course on the global community), with his readers through his website – Boundless Ocean of Politics. By doing so, he tries to keep himself afloat. You will find some of his articles in https://inserbia.info/today/ (https://inserbia.info/today/author/kou_das13_i/), as he has been trying to assess the global geopolitics since 2003. You can also mail him at kousdas@gmail.com View all posts by Koushik Das