Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday said Vice-President Hamid Ansari’s experience as a “career diplomat” had come in handy while dealing with his responsibility in the Rajya Sabha.
In his speech at Mr. Ansari’s farewell, Mr. Modi said he got to know the “real meaning” of career diplomats only after he became Prime Minister “as it was difficult to immediately interpret the meaning of a diplomat’s handshake or smile.”
He said Mr. Ansari came from a family that had been in public life for over 100 years, with a long association with the Congress and an active participation in the Khilafat movement.
On his last day in office, Mr. Ansari began his speech by reciting an Urdu couplet: Mujhpe ilzaam itne lagaaye gaye, begunahi ke andaaz jaate rahe [I have been accused (unjustly) so many times, that proving my innocence was hard].
He extensively quoted former Vice-President S. Radhakrishnan and said, “A democracy is likely to degenerate into a tyranny if it does not allow opposition groups to criticise fairly, freely and frankly the policies of the government.”
He also said, “A democracy is distinguished by the protection it gives to minorities. .... But at the same time the minorities have also their responsibilities. This House is a creation of the Constitution and reflective of the wisdom and foresight of the founding fathers who wished it to be a calibrated restraint on hasty legislation.”
Mr. Ansari hoped that all sections of the House would seek to achieve this laudable objective, as the manner in which they conduct business is watched by the citizens with a discerning eye.
Referring to Mr. Ansari's career, Mr. Modi said his tenure as a diplomat was focussed on West Asia and had been associated with the “same kind of atmosphere, same kind of ideology and same kind of people.”
Mr. Modi said that even after retirement from service, Mr. Ansari had mostly worked with the Minority Commission and Aligarh Muslim University.
“Your work remained limited in a particular area. But during these 10 years, you had to deal with a different kind of responsibility (in running the House). Each moment, you had to remain confined to the Constitution and you made a good effort,” Mr Modi said..
“There may have been some struggle within you (all these years) but from now onwards, you won’t have to face this dilemma. You will have a feeling of freedom and you will get an opportunity to work, think and talk according to your ideology ,” the Prime Minister told the outgoing Chairman of the Rajya Sabha.
