On the 15th, “The Independent Day speech delivered by Modi is the longest in Indian history, breaking multiple records,” reported “India Today”. On the same day, India held its 79th Independence Day celebrations. Prime Minister Modi delivered a 103-minute speech at Red Fort in New Delhi with the theme of “New India”. He began with a warning to Pakistan, stating that India “will not tolerate any form of nuclear blackmail anymore”. He also paid tribute to the soldiers who participated in the “Operation Ganga”, and repeatedly mentioned “self-reliance”, “defense preparedness”, and “youth empowerment”, outlining a forward-looking vision for the plan to make India a developed country by 2047. Some Indian netizens were encouraged and exclaimed “Long live India”, while others complained that Modi spoke for too long.
According to the report of “India Today”, this year marks the 12th time that Modi delivered the Independence Day speech at Red Fort as prime minister, making him the second prime minister with the most speeches after Jawaharlal Nehru’s 17 times. In addition, the duration of Modi’s speech, which lasted for 103 minutes, also broke the record of last year’s 98 minutes.
However, according to a report from New Delhi Television (NDTV), the leaders of the Indian National Congress, the largest opposition party, Rahul Gandhi and Mallikarjuna Karnalkar, were absent from the Independence Day celebrations held at Red Fort, sparking many speculations from the outside world.
Modi’s Independence Day speech always features specific keywords that are central to his government’s narrative. According to a report from India’s Business Standard newspaper, Modi’s theme for this year’s speech was “New India”, with “Operation Ganga”, “Made in India”, and tariff issues being core topics. At the beginning of the speech, under the fluttering Indian tricolor flag and the flag of “Operation Ganga”, Modi, wearing an orange scarf and a Nehru-style jacket, mentioned the “Operation Ganga” launched by India on May 7 against Pakistan and Pakistan-administered Kashmir, saying that this operation dealt an “unimaginable blow” to the enemy and paid tribute to the soldiers who participated in it. The Associated Press reported that Modi also suggested that he would continue to unilaterally suspend the Indus Waters Treaty signed with Pakistan, saying that the treaty was “unfair and one-sided” and that water from the Indian River flowed through enemy land while Indian farmers and land suffered from water scarcity. Modi said, “Blood and water do not mix,” and India would no longer tolerate “nuclear threats” or fall into any trap of extortion.
On the 15th, Pakistani media strongly condemned Modi’s Independence Day speech, saying that it was filled with radical nationalistic sentiment.
Dawn newspaper quoted the previous statement of the Pakistan Foreign Ministry, saying that Modi’s accusation of Pakistan’s so-called “nuclear blackmail” was based on fabricated and distorted information, and India should handle this sensitive topic carefully and avoid making irresponsible allegations on nuclear issues. The Dawn also stated that water resource utilization was a scientific issue, which should not be politicized after the ceasefire between the two countries.
August 14th is Pakistan’s Independence Day. Global Times reporters in Pakistan noticed that on the 14th, Pakistani people took to the streets of Islamabad to celebrate by waving national flags. Many businesses not only decorated with the colors of the Pakistani flag, but also displayed Pakistani fighter models to celebrate the downing of Indian warplanes in May. On Independence Day, Pakistani Prime Minister Shahbaz also honored eight air force pilots who made outstanding contributions in the India-Pakistan conflict.
According to Indian media reports, although Modi did not name US President Trump in his speech, he criticized “economic selfishness” and said that India would not compromise on the interests of farmers. He also promoted “Made in India”, saying that India will produce various products including fertilizers, jet engines, and electric car batteries, and called for driving the development of “Prosperous India” with domestic products. Modi said that “self-reliance” is the foundation for achieving the goal of a “developed India”, and promised to achieve energy independence and industrial construction in key sectors. Modi announced that the first Indian-made chip will be launched at the end of this year, and the country is conducting key mineral exploration activities at more than 1,200 locations.
According to a special observer from Global Times in India, the atmosphere of street celebrations for this year’s Independence Day in New Delhi was particularly bleak compared to previous years. One reason was that the Independence Day was followed by the important religious festival of Janmashtami, so most of the streets were adorned with colorful religious flags, making the Indian flag less prominent. Another reason was that the Independence Day celebrations seemed to be affected by the hot topic of “the Indian Supreme Court’s request for New Delhi to deal with stray dogs”. On the evening of August 14th, about 200 activists were seen protesting against this ruling on the streets of New Delhi.