Critics might accuse him of running roughshod over the Opposition, not being accommodative of contrarian viewpoints and being too assertive at times, but Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s emotive speech in the Rajya Sabha proved again that he is a sensible person driven by strong emotions and love for millions of countrymen whom he addresses as “bhaiyo aur behno”. The way he choked up a couple of times while bidding farewell to leader of the Opposition Ghulam Nabi Azad is what makes him stand out. Azad, too, echoed the sentiments and welled up visibly. What happened in the House of Elders is enough to reflect the true strength of our parliamentary democracy. However, the display of such emotions or camaraderie and respect for leaders cutting across party line is not unprecedented. For one, Modi himself — after being elected leader of the BJP parliamentary party in May 2014, in other words the PM-elect — choked up while responding to LK Advani’s speech where the senior leader said that Modi had done a kripa (favour) on the party. Even earlier, in 1994, then Prime Minister PV Narasimha Rao requested Atal Bihari Vajpayee, a member of the Opposition at the time, to lead the Indian delegation at a crucial United Nations (UN) meeting in Geneva, and Vajpayee agreed and played an important role at the session. Had the resolution against India passed, the country would have been put under economic sanctions. These leaders, belonging to rival parties, disagreed politically but put India first.

It may be unconceivable for those who believe in the politics of allegations and counter-allegations, and take the political discourse to a new low every day. However, Modi and Azad — sitting across each other in the Upper House — shared the spirit of working together in national interest, which made them transcend party or petty politics. The farewell speeches were the day’s highlight as these drowned the MPs and millions of television viewers in a sea of emotions. “I am concerned that whoever is appointed to his (Azad’s) position may not be able to match up to him,” Modi said. Visibly overwhelmed, the PM had to pause for a few sips of water while recalling how Azad, then the Chief Minister of J&K, called him up (Modi was the Gujarat CM) in 2006 to inform him about a terror attack in the Valley that claimed the lives of several Gujarati tourists. Azad also referred to the incident in emotionally charged words, and said that when he reads about the situation in Pakistan, he feels proud to be a “Hindustani Muslim”. Political pundits are free to interpret the speeches any way they like; they may argue that those were only “crocodile tears” and seasoned politicians like Modi and Azad know well how to use the “emotional quotient” for political mileage. However, we need not take such pessimistic and cynical assumptions seriously as long as leaders with emotion in their hearts continue to spearhead our democracy. We need not worry, we are in safe hands.

Critics might accuse him of running roughshod over the Opposition, not being accommodative of contrarian viewpoints and being too assertive at times, but Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s emotive speech in the Rajya Sabha proved again that he is a sensible person driven by strong emotions and love for millions of countrymen whom he addresses as “bhaiyo aur behno”. The way he choked up a couple of times while bidding farewell to leader of the Opposition Ghulam Nabi Azad is what makes him stand out. Azad, too, echoed the sentiments and welled up visibly. What happened in the House of Elders is enough to reflect the true strength of our parliamentary democracy. However, the display of such emotions or camaraderie and respect for leaders cutting across party line is not unprecedented. For one, Modi himself — after being elected leader of the BJP parliamentary party in May 2014, in other words the PM-elect — choked up while responding to LK Advani’s speech where the senior leader said that Modi had done a kripa (favour) on the party. Even earlier, in 1994, then Prime Minister PV Narasimha Rao requested Atal Bihari Vajpayee, a member of the Opposition at the time, to lead the Indian delegation at a crucial United Nations (UN) meeting in Geneva, and Vajpayee agreed and played an important role at the session. Had the resolution against India passed, the country would have been put under economic sanctions. These leaders, belonging to rival parties, disagreed politically but put India first.

It may be unconceivable for those who believe in the politics of allegations and counter-allegations, and take the political discourse to a new low every day. However, Modi and Azad — sitting across each other in the Upper House — shared the spirit of working together in national interest, which made them transcend party or petty politics. The farewell speeches were the day’s highlight as these drowned the MPs and millions of television viewers in a sea of emotions. “I am concerned that whoever is appointed to his (Azad’s) position may not be able to match up to him,” Modi said. Visibly overwhelmed, the PM had to pause for a few sips of water while recalling how Azad, then the Chief Minister of J&K, called him up (Modi was the Gujarat CM) in 2006 to inform him about a terror attack in the Valley that claimed the lives of several Gujarati tourists. Azad also referred to the incident in emotionally charged words, and said that when he reads about the situation in Pakistan, he feels proud to be a “Hindustani Muslim”. Political pundits are free to interpret the speeches any way they like; they may argue that those were only “crocodile tears” and seasoned politicians like Modi and Azad know well how to use the “emotional quotient” for political mileage. However, we need not take such pessimistic and cynical assumptions seriously as long as leaders with emotion in their hearts continue to spearhead our democracy. We need not worry, we are in safe hands.