Showers praise on Indian Americans for their contribution to relation building between India and the US

• I.S. Saluja

UNIONDALE, NY (TIP): It was the first day of Autum, September 22, when India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived at the Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum to address thousands of his supporters who greeted him with deafening chant of “Modi, Modi”.
Mr. Modi spent almost 10 minutes to shower praise on the Indian Diaspora. He spoke of the ability of Indians to “live in diversity and accommodate wherever they go”. At the same time, they “carry the feeling of Bharat Mata everywhere, whatever their language of the region”. Indians make the maximum contribution wherever they go, he said. American India -AI- is the world’s new power, said Mr. Modi. “I salute Indian Diaspora. I salute you all”.

Mr. Modi spoke about the 2024 elections which brought him to power for the consecutive third term, terming it as historic as no other Prime Minister of India ever achieved the feat. He dwelt at length on his long political career . He said he served for 13 years as the longest serving Chief Minister of Gujarat. Then he went on to highlight his government’s achievements in the past 10 years and the plans for the future.

In an election victory-like speech, Mr. Modi defended and celebrated the poll outcome in which the BJP’s majority was significantly reduced. The Prime Minister rhetorically asked the crowd about the NDA getting elected for a third term, repeatedly, “Kya hua hai? (What happened?), Abki baar? (What next?)”, as the crowd confirmed he had won.

The Prime Minister said he had very big ambitions for his third term and needed to move forward with three times the speed and strength.

Mr. Modi spoke of a Viksit Bharat that is a flower with five petals. He defined the word PUSHP (flower). P stands for Progressive Bharat. U stands for Unstoppable Bharat. S stands for Spiritual first Bharat. H stands for Humanity first Bharat . And P stands for Progressive Bharat. This description of Bharat drew loud and long applause.

The Prime Minister listed the government’s achievements since 2014, citing examples such as airport and metro systems, broadband services and poverty reduction. He highlighted India’s digitization and emphasized its environmental consciousness, while noting that it had not historically been a major contributor to climate change.

Mr. Modi said that while earlier India had a foreign policy of being equidistant from other countries, today it was keeping equally close to other countries.

“We are also a strong voice of the Global South,” he said. The Prime Minister said the world listened when India spoke at global platforms, as he cited his interaction with Russian President Vladimir Putin in 2022, when he said, “ This is not the era of war”.

Prior to Mr. Modi’s arrival, there were a number of classical, fusion and folk performances, some to reflect the melding of Indian and American nationalism and cultures, such as a fusion rendition of America the Beautiful and Vande Mataram. Some well-known artistes and social media personalities, such as the rapper Hanumankind, were among those who performed at the event.

According to the organizers over 13000 of Mr. Modi’s fans turned up , leaving thousands of chairs vacant. The organizers had claimed they had received 24000 registrations, and some claimed even a higher number. Mr. Modi himself had suggested during the speech that not all who wanted to attend could do so for lack of space. Arrangements were made to accommodate thousands who may not have been able to gain entry, but there hardly were many outside.
The event, called ‘Modi & US’ was organized by Indian American Community U.S. ( IACU), a non-profit that also describes itself as non-partisan.