Hon’ble Prime Minister Narendra Modi Inaugurates 9th G20 Parliamentary Speakers’ Summit (P20).

Hon’ble Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the 9th G20 Parliamentary Speakers’ Summit (P20) at Yashobhoomi, New Delhi on Friday (13th October, 2023). The summit is being hosted by the Parliament of India under the broader framework of India’s G20 Presidency with the theme of ‘Parliaments for One Earth, One Family, One Future’.

Addressing the gathering, the Prime Minister welcomed the dignitaries to the G20 Parliamentary Speakers’ Summit on behalf of 140 crore citizens of India. “The Summit is a ‘Maha Kumbh’ of all Parliamentary practices from across the globe”, the Prime Minister remarked. Underlining that all the delegates present today hold the experience of the Parliamentary framework from different countries, the Prime Minister expressed great satisfaction with today’s event. Referring to the festive season in India, the Prime Minister said that G20 kept the festive fervor going throughout the year as G20 festivities pervaded many cities where G20-related events were organized during India’s presidency. These festivities were augmented by events like the moon landing of Chandrayaan, a successful G20 summit and the P20 summit. “The biggest strength of any nation is its people and their will power and this summit is a medium to celebrate that”, he said.  

The Prime Minister emphasized that the P20 Summit is taking place on the land which is not only known as the mother of democracy but is also the largest democracy in the world. As representatives of different Parliaments from around the world, the Prime Minister underlined the importance of debates and deliberations as he mentioned accurate examples of such debates from history. He informed that assemblies and committees have found a mention in the five-thousand-year-old Vedas and scriptures of India, where collective decisions were made for the betterment of society. Speaking about Rigveda, India’s oldest scripture, the Prime Minister recited a Sanskrit shloka which means ‘We must walk together, speak together and that our minds must be conjoined’. He informed that issues related to the village level were resolved by indulging in debates which became a source of great amazement for the Greek ambassador Megasthenes who wrote about it in great detail. The Prime Minister also touched upon a 9th-century inscription in Tamil Nadu which elaborates upon rules and codes of village legislatives. “The 1200-year-old inscription also mentions the rules for disqualification of a member”, he added. Speaking about the Anubhav Mantappa tradition which has been going on since the 12th century in India, and years before the Magna Carta came into existence, the Prime Minister informed that discussions were encouraged where people from every caste, creed and religion were free to express their thoughts. “The Anubhav Mantappa initiated by Jagatguru Basweshwara makes India proud even today”, the  Prime Minister remarked as he underlined that the journey of India from 5000-year-old scriptures till today is a heritage of Parliamentary traditions not just for India but the entire world. 

“Addressing the G20 Parliamentary Speakers’ Summit. It is a unique confluence of various parliamentary practices from around the world.”, Hon’ble Prime Minister Narendra Modi tweeted.

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