Prime Minister Modi said it was essential that political parties develop for the future with a true democratic spirit where all voices are heard and hoped the media would aid in the process.

Poulomi Saha | Edited by Dev Goswami

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, at his annual Diwali interaction media persons, talked about the need to make people aware of the internal democracies of political parties.

Prime Minister Modi said it was essential that political parties develop for the future with “true democratic spirit” where all voices are heard. He hoped media would aid in the process while also expressing the need for transparency in political funding.

The media often talks about and discusses the funding of political parties, PM Modi said at the interaction in New Delhi, adding that more needs to be done so that “democracy in political parties is a subject (that) more people (get to) know more about.”

Prime Minister Modi also expressed his regret over not being able to interact with the media as often as he used to when he was a Bharatiya Janata Party worker.

The prime minister went on to laud the media for the support it lent to his pet ‘Swacchta Abhiyan’ project. “The media unanimously supported this programme and spoke in one voice in support of it. Despite reels of newspaper print and television airtime dedicated to criticism of the government, the media has whole-heartedly extended its support to this programme,” PM Modi said.

Ending his short speech, PM Modi said that while the government and media may have complain against each other, he hoped the two can still amicably work together.

PM Modi was speaking at the BJP’s annual ‘Diwali Milan’ in New Delhi for journalists. The event was attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, party president Amit Shah, Union Ministers Smriti Irani, Nirmala Sitharaman, Dr Jitendra Singh and Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi.