By IANS
New Delhi : If democracy has grown in India it is because of the country’s belief in non-violence, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said Tuesday while also ruing that in today’s world Mahatma Gandhi’s principles were being ignored and forgotten.
The prime minister was speaking at the headquarters of the Congress party Tuesday morning on the occasion of Mahatama Gandhi’s 138th birth anniversary that is being observed as International Non Violence Day. Manmohan Singh also flagged off a march from the Congress headquarters to the Gandhi memorial at Rajghat to mark the occasion.
In his brief address to the marchers who had assembled in the traditional white Congress uniform, Singh said: “Non-violence is essential and of extreme importance in our daily lives and for conducting day-to-day affairs. The Congress has a responsibility of taking forward both democracy and non-violence. Whatever challenges come in our way, we will adopt non-violence and face them.”
Urging party men to spread the message of non-violence to every nook and corner of the country, Manmohan Singh rued that in the modern times the spirit of non-violence was being forgotten.
“It is a weapon with the help of which the weakest become stronger. Mahatma Gandhi had proved that it is not only for the saints but also for everyone to practice non-violence. It is for the brave and not for the cowards.”
He reminded the people how the Father of the Nation had used non-violence as the most effective tool for winning independence.
He reminded his audience that Congress President Sonia Gandhi would be addressing the UN General Assembly Tuesday night India time and through her address would convey the message of non-violence across the globe.
The prime minister handed over the Congress flag to a group of leaders representing various organisations affiliated to the party. Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit and Delhi state Congress chief J.P. Aggarwal led the group.