Pranab Mukherjee with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President-elect Ram Nath Kovind at Rashtrapati Bhavan. (Express Photo by Renuka Puri)
President Pranab Mukherjee in his last address to the nation on Monday gave his message of tolerance and pluralism, saying the “soul of India” lies there. “The soul of India resides in pluralism and tolerance. India is not just a geographical entity. It carries a history of ideas, philosophy, intellect, industrial genius, craft, innovation and experience. Plurality of our society has come about through assimilation of ideas over centuries. The multiplicity in culture, faith and language is what makes India special. We derive our strength from tolerance. It has been part of our collective consciousness for centuries.
“There are divergent strands in public discourse. We may argue, we may agree or we may not agree. But we cannot deny the essential prevalence of multiplicity of opinion. Otherwise, a fundamental character of our thought process will wither away,” Mukherjee said.
This is not the first time Mukherjee has made the observations but the fact that the man who Prime Minister Narendra Modi lauded on Monday for his ability to rise above partisan politics chose to sign off on this note is significant in the present context when there have been multiple cases of lynchings of Dalits and minorities on the pretext of protecting the cow.
Parliament, during the ongoing Monsoon Session, has seen disruptions and discussion on the issue of these lynchings that have occurred with alarming regularity. Monday was the last day of Mukherjee’s term as the President of India. On Tuesday morning, Ram Nath Kovind will be sworn in as the fourteenth President. Mukherjee added: “The capacity for compassion and empathy is the true foundation of our civilisation. But every day, we see increased violence around us. At the heart of this violence is darkness, fear and mistrust. We must free our public discourse from all forms of violence, physical as well as verbal….”
He reiterated the importance of a commitment to an inclusive society, drawing on the beliefs of Mahatma Gandhi, describing financial inclusion as the core of an equitable society.
Summing up the philosophy that governed his five years at Rashtrapati Bhavan, he said: “My sacred text has been the Constitution of India. My temple has been the Parliament of India, and my passion has been the service of the people of India.”
He also quoted from his own first address to the nation delivered on the eve of independence day in 2012 to make the point that all citizens of the country are equal and “India asks each one of us in whatever role we play in the complex drama of nation building to do our duty with integrity, commitment and unflinching loyalty to the values enshrined in our Constitution.”
