“In every
sector of India’s forward march, I see the U.S. as an indispensable partner,”
Mr. Modi told the audience. Not only Indian newspapers, but most media across
the globe carried pictures of Shri Modiji in Congress on their front pages on Thursday,
9th June 2016. The United States Capitol, often called the Capitol
Building or Capitol Hill, is the seat of the United States Congress, the
legislative branch of the U.S. federal government. It sits atop Capitol Hill,
at the eastern end of the National Mall in Washington, D.C.. The original
building was completed in 1800 and was subsequently expanded, particularly with
the addition of the massive dome.
Shri
Narendra Modi is not the first ! – he is the 5th Indian prime
minister to address a joint session of US lawmakers (sixth if you include
Nehru, who addressed the House and Senate separately in 1949), and from the
packed audience it seemed as if they had momentarily put aside the intensely
riveting politics around the California primary and the subsequently
presumptive nomination of Hillary Clinton as the Democratic candidate, to come
and hear Modi in Washington DC. The Prime
minister’s trip to the US was certainly about saying farewell to Barack Obama,
but equally to tell the bipartisan US Congress that he is willing to deal with
whoever becomes the next president of the US, Hillary Clinton or Donald Trump.
No wonder he was aiming to please the Congress, especially sections who wonder
about his democratic credentials. Modi’s invocation that the “Constitution is
his only holy book,” is aimed at reassuring this section of the US political
class.
In his
speech, the PM condemned global terrorism and said during a lengthy address to
Congress on Wednesday that growing economic ties benefit both his country and
the United States. “The innovation strength of our two countries comes together
in California,” said Mr. Modi, who visited California last year. “Here, the
innovative genius of America and India’s intellectual creativity are working to
shape new industries of the future.” Mr. Modi made clear that he intended the
speech to hail a new moment in relations between the United States and India
when he told Congress at the outset that he had started his visit to Washington
with a trip to Arlington National Cemetery. He called it “the final resting
place of many brave soldiers of this great land.” “I honored their courage and
sacrifice for the ideals of freedom and democracy,” Mr. Modi added.
One lost
count of the number of times Modi received a standing ovation from the US
Congressmen. The number of times they stood to applaud him, and the number of
times they clapped and cheered could not just have been for courtesy. They felt
for him and for what he spoke. All this in a country that had denied him a
visa, a few years ago and sadly when a group of Indian politicians jointly
signed a memorandum urging the US Govt to do so. (it would defy logic as to why
erstwhile elected members should represent to another Govt !!!)
Way back in
March 2000, when US President Bill Clinton finished his address to a joint
session of Parliament in New Delhi, and walked down the aisle in Central Hall,
a number of MPs cut across party lines from both Houses of Parliament, jumped
over benches and jostled for space to somehow shake hands with him. More than
what the visiting dignitary spoke about, the honourable parliamentarians’
over-enthusiasm and joy to meet the visiting dignitary — including those who
till the other day had never missed an opportunity to deride America and its
leadership — made the news. A decade later, in November 2010, when President
Barrack Obama was to address a joint session of Parliament, the MPs were
especially told to "behave in a dignified manner" during and after
his address. The advisory was official, sent by the parliamentary affairs
ministry to leaders of all parliamentary parties to ensure that "decorum
and dignity" of India's temple of democracy was maintained.
Now rolls
reversed ~ when our Prime Minister addressed a joint meeting of Congress, the
US politicians jostled around for autograph.
It was also the occasion when those sitting in the audience — in the
visitors and media gallery in Central Hall of Parliament and those hearing
globally — wondered if ever an Indian
leader would possess the same oratorical flourish and energy to speak like a
world leader at such forums.
A few years
ago, there was debate on whether Obama
had spoken extempore or was making a smart use of a teleprompter to read his
speech and make it appear like extempore. On 8th June 2016, the manner in which Modi spoke, the substance and
flourish of it, despite the fact that he spoke in a (English) language which
for a long time in his life must have been alien to him, and the kind of
rapturous applause he received from the US Congressmen, would make every Indian
feel happy and confident of oneself and the nation, whether in India or abroad.
On Wednesday, Modi accomplished something that a vast majority of Indians had
only dreamed about for long. The thunderous applause when he finished,
continuing for over a minute from all corners of the hall in the Capitol, was
comparable to the one Modi received at BJP's National Council meeting. A clearly
overwhelmed Modi kept waving at the audience in all corners, accepting the
cheers with gratitude.
Mr. Modi has
encouraged a continued American military presence in Afghanistan because he is
worried that Pakistan will have unchallenged influence there once the Americans
leave. “Your contribution in keeping the region safe and secure is deeply
appreciated,” Mr. Modi said, adding: “A commitment to rebuild a peaceful and
stable and prosperous Afghanistan is our shared objective.” Almost exactly 31
years ago, Rajiv Gandhi, then India’s prime minister, also spoke of Afghanistan
in an address to Congress. But he did it in the context of justifying the
Soviet military presence there because, he said, Soviet troops were “invited by
the Karmal regime,” a reference to the Soviet-installed government of President
Babrak Karmal.
The
different references to Afghanistan are a measure of just how much relations
between the world’s largest democracies have changed in three decades. Some of
us wondered as to why in this ‘selfie World’ why none took selfies with the
Indian dignitary. It is because, US
lawmakers and staff aides had been told that when they meet PM Modi during his
Washington trip, they should not take any selfies. The advice was issued by
House protocol expert Elizabeth Heng.
Apart from
addressing the joint sitting of the US Congress, PM Modi attended four back to
back meetings at the Hill. He also attended a lunch hosted by House Speaker
Paul Ryan and a reception hosted in his honor by the Senate and House foreign
relations committees and the India Caucuses in the House and the Senate. As he
left the Capitol Hill, the Prime Minister broke protocol to reach out to
members of the Indian community waiting outside, shaking hands with many of
them.
With regards
– S. Sampathkumar
10th
June 2016.
Photo credit : Press Info bureau of India (PIB). News collated from various sources including First Post, Indian Express, Time magazine, NY Times, Washington post, Huffington Post, Zee
