New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday delivered a 103-minute Independence Day speech from the ramparts of the Red Fort, the longest by any prime minister in India’s history.
Modi broke his own 98-minute record from the 78th Independence Day last year.
His longest Independence Day speech before 2024 was 96 minutes in 2016 while his shortest speech was in 2017 when he spoke for 56 minutes.
On India’s 79th Independence Day, Modi also broke Indira Gandhi’s record by delivering 12 consecutive speeches from Red Fort to stand next only to Jawaharlal Nehru who delivered 17 Independence Day addresses in a row.
Modi delivered his first Independence Day speech in 2014, which lasted 65 minutes.
His speech in 2015 lasted for 88 minutes. In 2018, Modi address from the ramparts of the Red Fort was 83 minutes. Subsequently, in 2019, he spoke for nearly 92 minutes.
In 2020 Modi’s I-day address lasted 90 minutes.
His Independence Day speech in 2021 lasted 88 minutes and in 2022 he spoke for 74 minutes.
In 2023, Modi’s speech was 90 minutes.
Before Modi, Jawaharlal Nehru in 1947 and IK Gujral in 1997 had the longest speeches at 72 and 71 minutes, respectively.