PM Modi says Nehru, Indira had a low opinion of Indians: Which speeches was he referring to, what did the former PMs say?

What did the Prime Minister say?

The Prime Minister referred to two speeches that he said were delivered by Nehru and Indira from the Red Fort on Independence Day. He said: “Let me read out what Nehru said from the Red Fort on Independence Day. He said, ‘Indians are not used to working hard. We don’t work as hard as people in Europe or Japan or China or Russia do. These communities have become prosperous through their hard work and intelligence.’ So, Nehru was giving certificates to other countries, while looking down on Indians. He thought Indians were lazy and lacking in intelligence. Indira’s beliefs were no different.”

The Prime Minister then quoted Indira as having said: ‘Unfortunately, when a good task is about to be completed, we get complacent, and when a difficulty arises, we lose hope. Sometimes, the entire country seems to have accepted a defeatist attitude.’

Nehru thought Indians were lazy: Prime Minister @narendramodi#BudgetSession2024 #Budget2024 #BudgetSession@PMOIndia pic.twitter.com/WhCIS7HG2Z

— DD News (@DDNewslive) February 5, 2024

He then added: “Today, looking at the Congress, I feel Indira was wrong about Indians, but her estimation was accurate about the Congress party.”

The PM also said, “This is what people from the royal family of Congress thought of my countrymen, and their belief remains the same today.”

Which speech of Nehru was PM Modi referring to?

PM Modi did not specify a year, but he appears to have been quoting from Nehru’s 1959 Independence Day speech. In this speech, delivered 12 years after India gained independence, Nehru exhorted his countrymen to become more self-reliant. “The government and officials are here to help, but a community does not move ahead with the help rendered by officials, it moves ahead on it own feet,” Nehru said in Hindi, according to the official record of the speech.

Nehru went on to add: “I want that the government’s interference should be minimal, people should have the reins in their own hands… How does a community progress? Through its own hard work.”

After this, he moved on to give examples of other developed countries, and said, “In India, the habit to work very hard is not very common. It is not our fault, habits form due to incidents (aadatein aise pad jati hain, vakyat se). But the fact is we don’t work as hard as people in Europe or Japan or China or Russia do… These communities became prosperous not through some magic, but through their hard work and intelligence. We too can progress through hard work and intelligence, there is no other option.”

What did Indira Gandhi say in her speech?

The Prime Minister appears to have referred to Indira’s speech in 1974, when the rumblings of the JP movement had begun, and she was facing large-scale opposition across the country.

She said in her speech, also delivered in Hindi: “Today, we need to figure out how to rid the society of its ills. Will this happen through violence and protests? Through fighting each other? Of course the government has its responsibility, but can’t every person play his part too?”

She then gave examples of people not buying from black markets, keeping cities clean, and growing vegetables in pots.

“Unfortunately”, she said, “when a good task is about to be completed, we get complacent, and when a difficulty arises, we lose hope. Sometimes, the entire country seems to have accepted a defeatist attitude.”

She went on to add: “I want to tell you all that don’t lose courage and keep faith in the future of the country and countrymen.”