PM Modi's high praise for Droupadi Murmu at US Congress: ‘Woman from a tribal background…'

PM Modi lauded Droupadi Murmu, hailing from a tribal community, for rising through the ranks to become India’s 15th Presiden.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday, during his address to a joint session of the US Congress, referred to President Murmu as an icon of women-led development in India. Modi added that the country’s vision is not just built on initiatives that benefit women, but with them at the forefront. He lauded Murmu for rising through the ranks to become India’s 15th President despite hailing from a tribal background.

PM Modi lauded President Droupadi Murmu in his address at the US Congress. (File)

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"...today in modern India, women are leading us to a better future. India's vision is not just of development that benefits women. It is of women-led development where women lead the journey of progress. A woman has risen from a humble tribal background to be our Head of State...," he said.

Read: How Droupadi Murmu, a tribal girl who dared to dream, became India’s 15th President

It was the second time that Modi addressed the US Congress, a first for any Indian prime minister. He is the second world leader after Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to be accorded the privilege of addressing a joint House more than once.

Calling India the ‘mother of democracy’, even as he faced a question earlier from the US media on the protection of Muslims and other minorities in the country, Modi said it is one of our sacred and shared values. “Democracy is the idea that welcomes debate and discourse. Democracy is the culture that gives wings to thought and expression. India is blessed to have such values from time immemorial,” he added.

Modi also said India celebrates all faiths in the world and that “diversity is a natural way of life”. He also praised the historic achievement of Kamala Harris, the first female, first Black and first Asian-American vice president.