Congress President Smt Sonia Gandhi’s speech at Indira Gandhi Award for National Integration (31st Oct 2019)

Dr. Manmohan Singh ji, Chandi Prasad Bhatt ji, Motilal Vora ji, Distinguished Guests, Friends

This evening, we gather here to honour distinguished men and women whose lives have epitomized the values Indira Gandhi cherished, the ideals she stood for, the causes she championed and the principles for which she became a martyr.

National integration was one of Indiraji’s many passions. But unlike those in the ruling establishment now, she did not equate unity with uniformity. On the contrary, she was deeply conscious of and proud of India’s many diversities. She was profoundly sensitive to India’s many cultural traditions. She was fiercely wedded to strengthening the bonds of political and cultural unity. She believed in accommodating, respecting and celebrating our many diversities.

She also recognized that without just economic and social policies that actively promoted equity and inclusiveness, India could not develop and prosper. Her vision of national integration was all encompassing, helping the disadvantaged, and ensuring that no section of Indian society was excluded on the basis of caste or creed.

The fundamental assumptions that guided our freedom struggle and inspired our country after independence are now being called into question. Today, we see rising intolerance, rising violence. A skewed vision of our history and society is being imposed along with falsehood and unscientific ideas. All this is the antithesis of the liberal, secular and democratic foundations of our country.

If national integration was one of Indira Gandhi’s passions, the preservation of India’s rich and wonderful biodiversity was a vision far ahead of its time. She strove for economic development. But it was her steadfast conviction that the means must not disturb what she used to

1 often call “ecological balance’. Economic growth must not mean the destruction of the environment. So, it is very appropriate that today, we honour Chandi Prasad Bhatt, a true Gandhian, a man whose entire life has been shaped by the Sarvodaya philosophy.

For well over half a century, he has been a relentless fighter for the protection of our forests, our rivers, our mountains and of our natural heritage. He has inspired peoples movements in different parts of the country, of which the Chipko Andolan is perhaps the most famous. This agitation had a huge impact on Indira Gandhi’s own thinking and led to the historic Forest Conservation Act of 1980.

There is a fact perhaps less known that I would like to mention. In the mid-1970s, Chand Prasad ji was also the savior of the sacred temple of Badrinath. There had been, at that time, a plan to embellish the temple, to modernize it, according to some, by tampering with its original structure. He led a protest against the plan, involving the people of the area. As a result, the historically unique architectural style of Badrinath was preserved. The incident shows that like Indira Gandhi, he believes in the inseparability of our cultural and natural heritage.

Chandi Prasad Bhatt has been a beacon for many across our country for the courage of his convictions, for the force of his ideas and actions and for the manner of his living and working. He has influenced so many, not only in India but elsewhere as well. May he continue to illuminate our path ahead during these troubled times.

Thank you,

Jai Hind.

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