Sentiment of 'nation first' will keep Constitution alive for centuries: PM

PTI, NEW DELHI, NOV 26, 2024 : Hailing the Constitution as a "living stream," Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday said it is acting as a "guiding light" at a time when India is going through a period of transformation.

Addressing an event marking Constitution Day celebrations at the Supreme Court, Modi also paid homage to the victims of the Mumbai terror attack and reiterated the country's resolve that all terror groups challenging India's security will be given a befitting reply.

Recalling the words of Rajendra Prasad in his concluding address to the Constituent Assembly on November 26, 1949, Modi said Prasad had stated that India does not need anything more than a group of honest people who will keep the country's interests above their own.

"This sentiment of 'nation first' will keep the Constitution alive for centuries to come," he said.

Modi highlighted that the Constitution has now been fully implemented in Jammu and Kashmir, and Constitution Day was celebrated there for the first time.

"Our Constitution makers knew that India's aspirations and dreams would reach new heights with time. They knew that the needs of independent India and its citizens would change, and challenges would evolve. That is why they did not leave our Constitution as just a mere book of laws. Rather, they made it a living, continuously flowing stream," Modi said.

"Today, every citizen of the country has only one goal — to build a developed India," the Prime Minister said at the event, which was attended by Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal, Chief Justice of India Sanjiv Khanna, and Supreme Court Bar Association of India President Kapil Sibal, among others.

India is going through a period of transformation, and at such an important time, it is the Constitution of India that is "showing us the way and is a guiding light for us," Modi said.

Asserting that Indians should get speedy justice, Modi said that for this, a new judicial code has been implemented.

"The punishment-based system has now changed to a justice-based system," he said.

Speaking in a lighter vein while concluding his address, Modi said:

"I have tried to keep within the boundaries of the job designated to me by the Constitution. I have not tried any encroachment. I have tried to put forward my views within the boundaries. Only a hint is enough here; there is no need to say much.