President Pranab Mukherjee’s address to both houses of Parliament on Monday, an opportunity for the new government to convey its policy intentions, had all the hallmarks of a Narendra Modi vision document: it mentioned 100 smart cities, high-speed rail links, housing for all and spreading yoga. It more or less conformed to the Bharatiya Janata Party’s election manifesto, while drawing much of its inspiration from the promise-filled speeches that Modi delivered over the course of his campaign.
The final result: an address that offers a vision of an India completely transformed in the next 60 months. But grand promises in Presidential addresses are par for course. Here’s what was different about this one.
Pithy Phrase Prez
Although the Presidential Address has always been a document of the ruling party – it is cleared by the Cabinet beforehand – this time the fact was drilled into us, thanks to Pranab Mukherjee’s repeated use of NaMo taglines. There were the popular "Ek Bharat, Shresht Bharat" (United India, Successful India), "Minimum Government, Maximum Governance", and "Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas" (Development for one and all) slogans that had been all over BJP posters a few weeks ago. But the speech also had a few new ones, such as like "Per Drop More Crop" and "Har Khet Ko Pani" (Water for every field). The only one missing? Ab ki baar...
Ironic Pranabda
It was already enough to hear President Pranab Mukherjee, a man who spent decades working for the Congress, having to call this “my government”. That was simply an effect of tradition, with Presidents usually using the phrase in this address, albeit with some taking to it more than others – KR Narayanan in 1999 said “my government” only twice, compared to the 65 occasions Mukherjee used it. But it was even more interesting to see the President being forced to criticise not just the party he worked for, but his own tenure in it. Early on, Mukherjee called this election one of hope and a “turning point” in Indian democracy, with its clear decisive mandate for a single party. The man who was finance minister until 2012 spoke of the “extremely difficult phase” the economy is going through, although he only specifically mentioned the last two years of sub-5% growth (as his successor as finance minister, P Chidambaram, might well have noted). Well remembered for his insistence on retroactive taxation, Mukherjee also insisted that his government will make sure the new government’s tax regime is “non-adversarial and conducive to investment”.
The lessons of Incredible India
For a party that has continually hit out at the Congress’ welfarist model, the President’s Address continued to include a clear focus on the nation’s poor. In his first speech to Parliament after the elections, Modi insisted that his government would “live for the poor”. This time around, the first detailed portion of the President’s Address began with, “My government is dedicated to the poor”, with Mukherjee insisting that the aim was not to alleviate but eliminate poverty.
Tech-tonic
The BJP ended up running one of the most digitally innovative election campaigns ever, and they’re not about to let this virtual initiative go. The address promised everything from Massive Open Online Courses, or MOOCs, a national e-library, digitisation of records, a “broadband highway” and a National Mission e-Bhasha aimed at developing digital vernacular content. “Emerging technologies like social media will be used as a tool for participative governance, directly engaging the people in policy making and administration,” Mukherjee said.
Look Ahead
Maybe because of the sheer size of the victory, there was little in the way of gloating in the speech. Other than the reference to the decisiveness of the victory and the election of a strong government, the address primarily focused on what Modi’s regime claims it will deliver.This is somewhat unlike the speech offered up by President Abdul Kalam in 2004, after the United Progressive Alliance came to power, which had several references to the weaknesses of the outgoing National Democratic Alliance: “My government is aware of the systematic erosion of autonomy of our institutions of repute in recent years,” Kalam said.
Over and over again
As go the manifestos, so go the Presidential Addresses. The Congress always promised 33% reservation for women in Vidhan Sabhas and the Parliament, with Abdul Kalam in 2004 saying the government will “take the lead” in introducing this, while Pratibha Patil in 2009 said that her government would ensure early passage of the Bill within the first 100 days of its tenure. On Monday, Mukherjee asserted the government’s “commitment” to the policy of 33% reservation. Similarly, the specially abled get the usual promises. KR Narayanan in 1999 spoke of a special trust, Abdul Kalam in 2004 insisted the state would ensure the disabled are kept in the mainstream, Pratibha Patil in 2009 spoke of their welfare and now Mukherjee has said that the new government will take steps to provide “dignity of life” and institutional care.
ABV to NaMo
“The government is firmly committed to uphold secularism, which has deep roots in our society and polity. The recent incidents in Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, and Orissa have caused us anguish and concern. However, these have to be seen as an aberration, which do not reflect the national ethos. The Government is fully committed to the protection of minorities.”Those aren’t the words of a President under a Congress regime. Those are the words of KR Narayanan in 1999, with Atal Bihari Vajpayee as the Prime Minister. Secularism has since become verboten for the BJP, finding no place in this address. Instead, Mukherjee spoke of minorities continuing to suffer from poverty, announced a National Madrasa Modernisation programme and made one reference to curbing communal violence.The 1999 promise of ensuring the “early return” of Kashmiris to their homes was also reiterated, with Mukherjee saying this time that “special efforts” will be taken in this regard.
Omission &Commission
Mukherjee’s speech reflecting the Modi government’s dislike of red tape making no references to any committee and just two to commissions, one of them being the Election Commission. In 1999, the Address had spoken of eight commissions and three committees, while the 2004 Address included up to 10 commissions and one committee. Mukherjee’s speech did, however, include 11 “missions” – like the Swachh Bharat Mission – which were also popular in 2009, when there were 16 references to various missions.
Tid-bits
"My government is alert about the possibility of a subnormal monsoon this year and contingency plans are being prepared.
"We must not tolerate the indignity of homes without toilets and public spaces littered with garbage."
"A fast-track, investment friendly and predictable PPP mechanism will be put in place.""The international civil nuclear agreements will be operationalised and nuclear power projects for civilian purposes will be developed."
"Environment and forest clearance systems will be made more predictable, transparent and time-bound."
"We will pursue our international engagement based on enlightened national interest, combining the strength of our values with pragmatism, leading to a doctrine of mutually beneficial relationships"
Below are Wordle charts of the initial Presidential Addresses to both houses of Parliament from 1999 to 2009. All of them have the word "government" omitted for clarity’s sake.
1999: KR Narayanan, for an NDA government
2004: Abdul Kalam, for a UPA government
2009: Pratibha Patil, for a UPA government
We welcome your comments at
[email protected].
The final result: an address that offers a vision of an India completely transformed in the next 60 months. But grand promises in Presidential addresses are par for course. Here’s what was different about this one.
Pithy Phrase Prez
Although the Presidential Address has always been a document of the ruling party – it is cleared by the Cabinet beforehand – this time the fact was drilled into us, thanks to Pranab Mukherjee’s repeated use of NaMo taglines. There were the popular "Ek Bharat, Shresht Bharat" (United India, Successful India), "Minimum Government, Maximum Governance", and "Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas" (Development for one and all) slogans that had been all over BJP posters a few weeks ago. But the speech also had a few new ones, such as like "Per Drop More Crop" and "Har Khet Ko Pani" (Water for every field). The only one missing? Ab ki baar...
Ironic Pranabda
It was already enough to hear President Pranab Mukherjee, a man who spent decades working for the Congress, having to call this “my government”. That was simply an effect of tradition, with Presidents usually using the phrase in this address, albeit with some taking to it more than others – KR Narayanan in 1999 said “my government” only twice, compared to the 65 occasions Mukherjee used it. But it was even more interesting to see the President being forced to criticise not just the party he worked for, but his own tenure in it. Early on, Mukherjee called this election one of hope and a “turning point” in Indian democracy, with its clear decisive mandate for a single party. The man who was finance minister until 2012 spoke of the “extremely difficult phase” the economy is going through, although he only specifically mentioned the last two years of sub-5% growth (as his successor as finance minister, P Chidambaram, might well have noted). Well remembered for his insistence on retroactive taxation, Mukherjee also insisted that his government will make sure the new government’s tax regime is “non-adversarial and conducive to investment”.
The lessons of Incredible India
For a party that has continually hit out at the Congress’ welfarist model, the President’s Address continued to include a clear focus on the nation’s poor. In his first speech to Parliament after the elections, Modi insisted that his government would “live for the poor”. This time around, the first detailed portion of the President’s Address began with, “My government is dedicated to the poor”, with Mukherjee insisting that the aim was not to alleviate but eliminate poverty.
Tech-tonic
The BJP ended up running one of the most digitally innovative election campaigns ever, and they’re not about to let this virtual initiative go. The address promised everything from Massive Open Online Courses, or MOOCs, a national e-library, digitisation of records, a “broadband highway” and a National Mission e-Bhasha aimed at developing digital vernacular content. “Emerging technologies like social media will be used as a tool for participative governance, directly engaging the people in policy making and administration,” Mukherjee said.
Look Ahead
Maybe because of the sheer size of the victory, there was little in the way of gloating in the speech. Other than the reference to the decisiveness of the victory and the election of a strong government, the address primarily focused on what Modi’s regime claims it will deliver.This is somewhat unlike the speech offered up by President Abdul Kalam in 2004, after the United Progressive Alliance came to power, which had several references to the weaknesses of the outgoing National Democratic Alliance: “My government is aware of the systematic erosion of autonomy of our institutions of repute in recent years,” Kalam said.
Over and over again
As go the manifestos, so go the Presidential Addresses. The Congress always promised 33% reservation for women in Vidhan Sabhas and the Parliament, with Abdul Kalam in 2004 saying the government will “take the lead” in introducing this, while Pratibha Patil in 2009 said that her government would ensure early passage of the Bill within the first 100 days of its tenure. On Monday, Mukherjee asserted the government’s “commitment” to the policy of 33% reservation. Similarly, the specially abled get the usual promises. KR Narayanan in 1999 spoke of a special trust, Abdul Kalam in 2004 insisted the state would ensure the disabled are kept in the mainstream, Pratibha Patil in 2009 spoke of their welfare and now Mukherjee has said that the new government will take steps to provide “dignity of life” and institutional care.
ABV to NaMo
“The government is firmly committed to uphold secularism, which has deep roots in our society and polity. The recent incidents in Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, and Orissa have caused us anguish and concern. However, these have to be seen as an aberration, which do not reflect the national ethos. The Government is fully committed to the protection of minorities.”Those aren’t the words of a President under a Congress regime. Those are the words of KR Narayanan in 1999, with Atal Bihari Vajpayee as the Prime Minister. Secularism has since become verboten for the BJP, finding no place in this address. Instead, Mukherjee spoke of minorities continuing to suffer from poverty, announced a National Madrasa Modernisation programme and made one reference to curbing communal violence.The 1999 promise of ensuring the “early return” of Kashmiris to their homes was also reiterated, with Mukherjee saying this time that “special efforts” will be taken in this regard.
Omission &Commission
Mukherjee’s speech reflecting the Modi government’s dislike of red tape making no references to any committee and just two to commissions, one of them being the Election Commission. In 1999, the Address had spoken of eight commissions and three committees, while the 2004 Address included up to 10 commissions and one committee. Mukherjee’s speech did, however, include 11 “missions” – like the Swachh Bharat Mission – which were also popular in 2009, when there were 16 references to various missions.
Tid-bits
"My government is alert about the possibility of a subnormal monsoon this year and contingency plans are being prepared.
"We must not tolerate the indignity of homes without toilets and public spaces littered with garbage."
"A fast-track, investment friendly and predictable PPP mechanism will be put in place.""The international civil nuclear agreements will be operationalised and nuclear power projects for civilian purposes will be developed."
"Environment and forest clearance systems will be made more predictable, transparent and time-bound."
"We will pursue our international engagement based on enlightened national interest, combining the strength of our values with pragmatism, leading to a doctrine of mutually beneficial relationships"
Below are Wordle charts of the initial Presidential Addresses to both houses of Parliament from 1999 to 2009. All of them have the word "government" omitted for clarity’s sake.
1999: KR Narayanan, for an NDA government
2004: Abdul Kalam, for a UPA government
2009: Pratibha Patil, for a UPA government
