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PRESS INFORMATION BUREAU
GOVERNMENT OF INDIA
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CONFERMENT OF HONORARY DEGREE ON PM BY OXFORD UNIVERSITY
New Delhi, Asadha 17, 1927
July 8, 2005
The Prime Minister, Dr. Manmohan Singh has been conferred with a honorary degree by the Oxford University today. Following is the text of the acceptance speech by the Prime Minister on that occasion :
“I must at the outset express my deep sense of shock and anger at the
terrorist attacks in London yesterday. On behalf of the people of India and
on my own behalf I convey my own sincere condolences to the families and
friends of the deceased and those who have been injured. I also extend the
sympathy and solidarity of the people of India with the people of the United
Kingdom in particular the citizens of London.
I arrived here in the United Kingdom after dealing with the aftermath of
yet another terrorist attack in India. It is clear once again that terrorism
is a global threat. Terrorism anywhere is a threat to peace, freedom, human
dignity and civilization every where. Terrorism is cowardice aimed at the
innocent people . It is fed on hatred and cynicism.
Every time terrorists strike anywhere all of us who believe in democracy
and the rule of law must stand together and affirm our firm commitment to
fight this scourge resolutely and unitedly. I sincerely hope that all of
those who cherish and value open and free societies will join hands in the
war against terrorism wherever it is fought. I wish the people of London
well. I pray that their lives will soon return to normal and they can
resume their celebrations for having been chosen the venue for the 2012
Olympics.
This is an emotional moment for me. Oxford brings back many fond memories
that I cherish. For this reason, as much as for the intrinsic value of the
honour you bestow upon me, I am truly overwhelmed. I am grateful to you, Mr
Chancellor, and to your colleagues, for this honour. I have had the good
fortune of receiving several honorary degrees. However, there can be nothing
more valuable than receiving an honorary degree from one's own alma mater.
To be so honoured by a university where one has burnt the proverbial
midnight oil to earn a regular degree, is a most fulfilling experience. I
thank you for it. This is a day I will truly cherish.
The world has changed beyond recognition since I was a student here.
Yet, some age-old problems endure. Developing countries have found a new
voice, a new status and have acquired a new sense of confidence over the
last few decades. As an Indian, I see a renewed sense of hope and purpose.
This new optimism gives us Indians a sense of self-confidence and this
shapes our world view today. It would be no exaggeration to suggest that the
success of hundreds of young Indian students and professionals in
Universities like Oxford, and elsewhere across the world, has contributed to
this renewed self-confidence of a new India.
The economics we learnt at Oxford in the 1950s was also marked by optimism
about the economic prospects for the post-War and post-colonial world. But
in the 1960s and 1970s, much of the focus of development economics shifted
to concerns about the limits to growth. There was considerable doubt about
the benefits of international trade for developing countries. I must confess
that when I returned home to India, I was struck by the deep distrust of the
world displayed by many of my countrymen. We were influenced by the legacy
of our immediate past. Not just by the perceived negative consequences of
British imperial rule, but also by the sense that we were left out in the
cold by the Cold War.
There is no doubt that our grievance against the British Empire had
a sound basis. As the painstaking statistical work of the Cambridge
historian Angus Maddison has shown, India's share of world income collapsed
from 22.6% in 1700, almost equal to Europe's share of 23.3% at that time, to
as low as 3.8% in 1952. Indeed, at the beginning of the 20th Century, "the
brightest jewel in the British Crown" was the poorest country in the world
in terms of per capita income. However, what is significant about the
Indo-British relationship is the fact that despite the economic impact of
colonial rule, the relationship between individual Indians and Britons, even
at the time of our Independence, was relaxed and, I may even say, benign.
This was best exemplified by the exchange that Mahatma Gandhi had
here at Oxford in 1931 when he met members of the Raleigh Club and the
Indian Majlis. The Mahatma was in England then for the Round Table
Conference and during its recess, he spent two weekends at the home of A.D.
Lindsay, the Master of Balliol. At this meeting, the Mahatma was asked: ‘How
far would you cut India off from the Empire?’ His reply was precise – ‘From
the Empire, entirely; from the British nation not at all, if I want India to
gain and not to grieve.’ He added, ‘The British Empire is an Empire only
because of India. The Emperorship must go and I should love to be an equal
partner with Britain, sharing her joys and sorrows. But it must be a
partnership on equal terms.’ This remarkable statement by the Mahatma has
defined the basis of our relationship with Britain.
Jawaharlal Nehru echoed this sentiment when he urged the Indian
Constituent Assembly in 1949 to vote in favour of India's membership of the
Commonwealth. Nehru set the tone for independent India's relations with its
former master when he intervened in the Constituent Assembly's debate on
India joining the Commonwealth and said:
‘I wanted the world to see that India did not lack faith in herself, and
that India was prepared to co-operate even with those with whom she had been
fighting in the past provided the basis of the co-operation today was
honourable, that it was a free basis, a basis which would lead to the good
not only of ourselves, but of the world also. That is to say, we would not
deny that co-operation simply because in the past we had fought and thus
carry on the trail of our past karma along with us. We have to wash out the
past with all its evil.’
India and Britain set an example to the rest of the world in the
way they sought to relate to each other, thanks to the wisdom and foresight
of Mahatma Gandhi and Jawaharlal Nehru. When I became the Finance Minister
of India in 1991, our Government launched the Indo-British Partnership
Initiative. Our relationship had by then evolved to a stage where we had
come to regard each other as partners. Today, there is no doubt in my mind
that Britain and India are indeed partners and have much in common in their
approach to a wide range of global issues.
What impelled the Mahatma to take such a positive view of Britain
and the British people even as he challenged the Empire and colonial rule?
It was, undoubtedly, his recognition of the elements of fair play that
characterised so much of the ways of the British in India. Consider the fact
that an important slogan of India's struggle for freedom was that ‘Self
Government is more precious than Good Government’. That, of course, is the
essence of democracy. But the slogan suggests that even at the height of our
campaign for freedom from colonial rule, we did not entirely reject the
British claim to good governance. We merely asserted our natural right to
self-governance.
Today, with the balance and perspective offered by the passage of time and
the benefit of hindsight, it is possible for an Indian Prime Minister to
assert that India's experience with Britain had its beneficial consequences
too. Our notions of the rule of law, of a Constitutional government, of a
free press, of a professional civil service, of modern universities and
research laboratories have all been fashioned in the crucible where an age
old civilisation met the dominant Empire of the day. These are all elements
which we still value and cherish. Our judiciary, our legal system, our
bureaucracy and our police are all great institutions, derived from
British-Indian administration and they have served the country well.
The idea of India as enshrined in our Constitution, with its emphasis on the
principles of secularism, democracy, the rule of law and, above all, the
equality of all human beings irrespective of caste, community, language or
ethnicity, has deep roots in India's ancient civilisation. However, it is
undeniable that the founding fathers of our republic were also greatly
influenced by the ideas associated with the age of enlightenment in Europe.
Our Constitution remains a testimony to the enduring interplay between what
is essentially Indian and what is very British in our intellectual heritage.
The idea of India as an inclusive and plural society, draws on both these
traditions. The success of our experiment of building a democracy within the
framework of a multi-cultural, multi-ethnic, multi-lingual and
multi-religious society will encourage all societies to walk the path we
have trodden. In this journey, both Britain and India have learnt from each
other and have much to teach the world. This is perhaps the most enduring
aspect of the Indo-British encounter.
It used to be said that the sun never sets on the British Empire. I am
afraid we were partly responsible for sending that adage out of fashion!
But, if there is one phenomenon on which the sun cannot set, it is the
world of the English speaking people, in which the people of Indian origin
are the single largest component.
Of all the legacies of the Raj, none is more important than the English
language and the modern school system. That is, if you leave out cricket! Of
course, people here may not recognise the language we speak, but let me
assure you that it is English! In indigenising English, as so many people
have done in so many nations across the world, we have made the language our
own. Our choice of prepositions may not always be the Queen's English; we
might occasionally split the infinitive; and we may drop an article here and
add an extra one there. I am sure everyone will agree, however, that English
has been enriched by Indian creativity as well and we have given you R.K.
Narayan and Salman Rushdie. Today, English in India is seen as just another
Indian language.
No Indian has paid a more poetic and generous tribute to Britain for this
inheritance than Gurudev Rabindranath Tagore. In the opening lines of his
Gitanjali, Gurudev says:
"The West has today opened its door.
There are treasures for us to take.
We will take and we will also give,
From the open shores of India's immense humanity."
To see the India - British relationship as one of 'give and take', at the
time when he first did so, was an act of courage and statesmanship. It was,
however, also an act of great foresight. As we look back and also look
ahead, it is clear that the Indo-British relationship is one of 'give and
take'. The challenge before us today is to see how we can take this
mutually beneficial relationship forward in an increasingly inter-dependent
world.
I wish to end by returning to my alma mater. Oxford, since the 19th
century, has been a centre for Sanskrit learning and the study of Indian
culture. The Boden professorship in Sanskrit, and the Spalding professorship
in Eastern Religions and Ethics, stand testimony to the university's
commitment to India and Indian culture. I recall with pride the fact that
the Spalding professorship was held by two very distinguished Indians: Dr S.
Radhakrishnan, who later became the President of India, and by Dr. Bimal
Krishna Matilal. In the context of the study and preservation of Indian
culture, I also wish to recall the contribution of another Oxonian, Lord
Curzon, about whose project to preserve and restore Indian monuments,
Jawaharlal Nehru said, "After every other Viceroy has been forgotten, Curzon
will be remembered because he restored all that was beautiful in India."
Many of those who were to rule India set course form Oxford. Some stayed
behind to become India's friends. Men like Edward Thompson, Verrier Elwin
and many others are remembered in India for their contribution to our life
and society.
I always come back to the city of dreaming spires and of lost causes as a
student. Mr Chancellor, I am here this time in all humility as the
representative of a great nation and a great people. I am beholden to you,
Mr Chancellor, and to my old university for the honour that I receive today.
Thank you.”
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