Dr. Jagdish Gandhi**,,
It is more important that what kind of person becomes the President of India
rather than WHO becomes the President of India.
India today needs a President who will not walk away from the world but instead lead the nations of the world into a new era of security, freedom and peace for all. Considering the sorry state of affairs in India and the world as a whole, it is imperative that the President of India be elected with mutual consensus. The President’s office is a constitutional post and a guardian of the Constitution and the person elected for this office should be beyond any controversy. India’s President should be the one who can lead the country and the world out of the present state of disorder and misery. Whatever happens in the world today affects all the countries of the world. We therefore believe that when it comes to electing the guardian of the constitution of the world’s largest democracy, we should elect a person who is capable enough to unite the world along with the country. Moreover, his/her life should be beyond reproach. He should believe in the unity of all the religions and should be committed to serving humanity as a whole.
Today a large number of countries are involved in a mad race to increase their stockpile of nuclear bombs and lethal warheads. International terrorism, increasing religious differences, growing lawlessness, environmental degradation and Global Warming are some of the issues that plague the world, and India is no exception. These global problems are endangering the future of not only the 40 crore children of India, but also the 200 crore children of the world.
We believe that India has two unique possessions – its Culture and Constitutional provision. India with its ancient philosophy of Vasudhaiva Kutumbukam and the Article 51 of its constitution is the only country equipped to rid the world-wide problems and save the world. Therefore the President of India should be a person who is deeply committed to the Indian culture and its constitution and who is willing to act on Article 51 of the Constitution of India.
The Article 51 of the Constitution of India states that:
The State shall endeavour to:
(a) promote international peace and security;
(b) maintain just and honourable relations between nations;
(c) foster respect for international law…, and
(d) encourage settlement of international disputes by arbitration.
Thus, Article 51 of Constitution of India provides solution for world issues like International Terrorism, Hunger, disease famine, violence, natural calamities and the fear of a third world war.
In order to save the world’s over two billion children (including forty crore children of India) and also the generations yet-to-be-born, India needs a President who can call a meeting of leaders of the world to form a World Parliament like that of the European Parliament of
27 countries and a World Currency like that of the Euro currency as in the 16 European countries. We believe that the United Nations Organization should continue with the humanitarian work, but the need of the hour is to form another worthy institution, i.e., World Parliament without any veto power system, a World Government and a World Court of Justice. The simple solution to bring peace and prosperity in the world is obviously the unification of the world for which the situation is opportune at present and there is no alternative for the safety and security of mankind.
In the past many great people of the world have stressed upon the need for a World Government. Some of the thoughts are given below:
1. Mahatma Gandhi said, “the future peace, security, and ordered progress of the world demands a world federation of free nations, and on no other basis can the problems of the modern world be solved. Such a world federation would ensure the freedom of its constituent nations, the prevention of aggression and exploitation by one nation over another, the protection of national ministries, the advancement of all backward areas and peoples, and the pooling of the world’s resources for the common good of all. He also said “A day will come when the world will approach India in its quest for peace and India will become the light of the world.”
2. Pandit Jawahar Lal Nehru said, “Either the world will unite or it will perish.”
3. Dr. B R Ambedkar said, “Law and Order are the medicine of the body politic and when the body politic (of the world) gets sick, medicine must be administered.”
4. Dr. Ram Manohar Lohia a great socialist leader constituted ‘World Development Council’, a step towards creation of ‘World Government’, with a view to establishing peace in the whole world.
5. Dr. S. Radhakrishnan said, “There will be one central authority to which the instruments of coercion will be surrendered… and a fraction of the sovereignty of independent nation states will have to be given up for the security of the whole world…”
6. Atal Bihari Vajpayee said, “We support world peace and will not let war happen.”
7. Martin Luther King, Jr. said, “Either we shall live together as brothers and sisters or die together as fools.”
8. John F. Kennedy said, “We must create worldwide laws and law enforcement, as we outlaw worldwide war and weapons.”
9. Winston Churchill said, “Unless we establish a world government, it will not be possible for us to avert World War III.”
10. U. Thant the then U.N. General Secretary said, “A world under law is ‘realistic’ and ‘attainable’.”
11. Albert Einstein said, “Only World law can assure progress towards a civilized peaceful community.”
12. Mikhail Gorbachev said, “An awareness of the need for some kind of global government is gaining ground, one in which all members of the world community would take part.”
13. Dwight D. Eisenhower said, “There must be law, steadily invoked and respected by all nations, for without law, the world promises only such meager justice as the pity of the strong upon the weak.”
14. Pope John Paul II said, “The international community should support a system of laws to regularize international relations.”
15. Bertrand Russell said, “Our goal, I repeat, should be the creation of a world government”.
16. Romain Rolland, French scholar said, “If there is one place on the face of earth where all the dreams of living men have found a home from the very earliest days when man began the dream of existence, it is India.”
17. Dr Rajendra Prasad Chairman of India’s Constituent Assembly in his closing address held on 26 November, 1949 had said “Indian Constitution Drafting Committee has succeeded in drafting a very good constitution. He also gave a warning as follows:- If people who get elected, are able and have good character, they will make our constitution very good inspite of its shortcomings. But if the elected representatives are devoid of good qualities then country’s constitution cannot help the country. At this moment India needs such people who are honest, who keep the interest of the country as top priority. In our national life disruptive tendencies are emerging due to various reasons. We are divided in communities, with caste discrimination, different languages and dialects, regional differences etc. Therefore, there is a need for having far sighted and strong willed people, who do not sacrifice country’s interest and dismantle the country’s unity for their own political gains.
Today the world is grappling with the problems of international terrorism, environmental degradation, climate change, and the proliferation of increasingly more powerful nuclear bombs and lethal arsenals. In such a difficult situation, the responsibility of India increases because of the two above named precious possessions (Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam & Article 51 of the Constitution of India) that India has.
Being the world’s largest democracy and having Article 51 of the Constitution of India, our country has the greatest responsibility of working for solving world’s problems. Therefore we need to elect by consensus such a person as the President of India who can save the future of not only India’s 40 crore children but also that of world’s over 200 crore children and generations yet-to-be-born. For this the President of India should invite the Heads of State of all the countries of the world and convince them to form a World Parliament, a World Government and a World Court of Justice, so that the world is saved from total disaster and which may lead to peace, prosperity and happiness for the whole world including our country and also safeguard the future of world’s over two billion children and generations yet to be born.
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*Dr Jagdish Gandhi
Educationist and Founder-Manager, City Montessori School, Lucknow.
*Disclaimer: The views expressed by the author in this feature are entirely his own and do not necessarily reflect the views of INVC
