Published 02:47 IST, July 27th 2020
PM Modi congratulates Suriname President Santokhi, lauds him for taking oath in Sanskrit
While taking the oath of office on July 16, Santokhi repeated the Sanskrit verses chanted by the priest and concluded his oath with 'Om Shanti, Shanti, Shanti'.
In his 67th edition of Mann Ki Baat on Sunday, July 26 Prime Minister Narendra Modi congratulated Suriname President Chandrika Parasad Santokhi and added that it was 'a matter of pride' for Indians that Suriname’s President took the oath of office holding the Vedas.
While taking the oath of office on July 16, Santokhi repeated the Sanskrit verses chanted by the priest and concluded his oath with 'Om Shanti, Shanti, Shanti'. In his statements that went on air, PM Modi praised the gesture and said that India has “a very close relationship” with Suriname.
Speaking about Suriname, PM Modi said, “More than a hundred years ago, people from India went there and made it their home. Today, the fourth or fifth generation is there. Today in Suriname more than one-fourth of the people are of Indian origin. 'Sarnami' one of the common languages there is a dialect of Bhojpuri. We Indians feel very proud of these cultural relations.”
He added, “Holding the Vedas in his hand he said, I, Chandrika Prasad Santokhi, and, further what did he say in his oath? He recited a hymn from the Vedas itself."
Wishes on behalf of 130 crore Indians
Moreover, PM Modi lauded the cultural ties of the South American nation with India that recently out voted former military strongman Desi Bouterse to elect Santokhi from the Person of Indian Origin (PIO) Parliamentary Conference, according to reports.
I congratulate Chandrika Prasad Santokhi, and, wish him the best on behalf of 130 crore Indians, for serving his nation, Prime Minister Modi said on Mann Ki Baat.
As per reports, Santokhi, a former chief of police, was born in 1959 and grew up in the countryside as the youngest in a family of nine children. He studied at the Police Academy of the Netherlands in Apeldoorn for four years and returned to Suriname in September 1982 to work for the police. In 1991, Santokhi was appointed chief commissioner of police.
(With ANI inputs)
Updated 02:47 IST, July 27th 2020