Democracy delivers when people are supreme: PM Modi

THEBUSINESSBYTES BUREAU

NEW DELHI, JANUARY 15, 2026

 “Democracy delivers in India because, for us, the people of the nation are supreme,” Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Thursday as he addressed the Conference of Commonwealth Speakers and Presiding Officers in New Delhi, underscoring India’s commitment to effective, inclusive and people-centric parliamentary democracy.

Speaking at the historic Central Hall, now rechristened as the Constitution House, the Prime Minister reminded delegates that the venue holds a unique place in India’s democratic journey. It was here, he said, that the Constituent Assembly met in the final years of colonial rule to draft the Constitution, and for 75 years after Independence, the building served as India’s Parliament, witnessing debates and decisions that shaped the nation’s destiny. Coming soon after the celebration of 75 years of the Constitution’s implementation, he described the gathering at the Constitution House as a moment of special significance for Indian democracy.

This was the fourth time India hosted the Conference of Commonwealth Speakers and Presiding Officers, with the theme “Effective Delivery of Parliamentary Democracy.” Reflecting on early doubts about whether democracy could survive and thrive in a country as diverse as India, the Prime Minister said India transformed its diversity into the greatest strength of its democratic system. He noted that India has also disproved the notion that democracy and development cannot go hand in hand, asserting that democratic institutions and processes have provided the country with stability, speed and scale.

Highlighting India’s economic and technological strides, the Prime Minister said the country is today the world’s fastest-growing major economy and a global leader across sectors, from digital payments and vaccine production to steel, startups, aviation, railways, metro networks, milk and rice production. These achievements, he said, reflect the strength of democratic governance.

The Prime Minister emphasised that democracy in India is defined by last-mile delivery and an unwavering focus on public welfare. He said this approach has enabled nearly 250 million people to come out of poverty in recent years, reinforcing the idea that in India, democracy truly delivers. He added that processes and technology have been democratised to ensure that the aspirations and dreams of citizens face no barriers.

Citing India’s response during the COVID-19 pandemic, the Prime Minister recalled that even while facing severe domestic challenges, the country supplied medicines and vaccines to more than 150 nations, reflecting India’s long-standing tradition of prioritising human welfare beyond its borders.

Referring to the 2024 general elections, he described them as the largest democratic exercise in human history, with nearly 980 million registered voters, more than 8,000 candidates and over 700 political parties, along with record participation by women voters. He said Indian women are not only participating in democracy but leading it, pointing to women occupying the offices of President of India and Chief Minister of Delhi, and nearly 1.5 million elected women representatives in local bodies, accounting for about half of grassroots leadership.

The Prime Minister highlighted the extraordinary diversity of Indian democracy, marked by hundreds of languages, more than 900 television channels and thousands of newspapers and periodicals. He said such diversity is sustained by deep democratic roots, shaped by India’s ancient traditions of debate, dialogue and collective decision-making. Recalling references from the Vedas, Buddhist Sanghas and a 10th-century village assembly inscription from Tamil Nadu, he described India as the “Mother of Democracy,” with values tested and strengthened over millennia.

Noting that nearly half of the Commonwealth’s population resides in India, the Prime Minister said the country remains committed to contributing meaningfully to the collective progress of Commonwealth nations, particularly in areas such as health, climate action, economic growth and innovation. He added that India continues to raise the concerns of the Global South on global platforms and, during its G20 presidency, placed these issues at the centre of the international agenda.

Looking ahead, the Prime Minister said India is building open-source technology platforms so that partner countries in the Global South and the Commonwealth can develop systems similar to those in India. He underlined the importance of Speakers and Presiding Officers in promoting awareness and understanding of parliamentary democracy and shared that the Indian Parliament is leveraging study tours, training programmes, internships and artificial intelligence tools, including real-time translation of debates into regional languages, to make parliamentary processes more accessible, especially for the youth.

Concluding his address, the Prime Minister said his engagements with parliaments across more than 20 member countries have been a source of continuous learning, with best practices shared back home. He expressed confidence that the conference would further strengthen cooperation, learning and the collective commitment to making parliamentary democracy more effective and inclusive across the Commonwealth.