'India first is the only religion of govt and Constitution is its only scripture': Key highlights from PM Modi's speech in Parliament

"The sanctity of the Constitution, it is our responsibility. We must not forget that people give us power when we move together in consensus... Consensus is more important than majority rule…." After a long time, we saw Prime Minister Narendra Modi move away from launching scathing attacks on the Opposition and rise beyond petty politics to talk of the sanctity of the Indian Constitution. On Friday, as he addressed the Lok Sabha on the Constitution debate, he was seen reaching out to the Opposition like never before amid discussions being held to commemorate the 125th birth anniversary of Dr BR Ambedkar. Here are some of the key takeaways from his speech:

His ‘Idea of India’

Prime Minister Narendra Modi said democracy gains strength when consensus is built and no party can impose its will no matter how big majority it possesses. In his one-hour long speech, Modi said 'India first' is the only religion of government and Constitution is its only scripture.

Rising above politics to laud all the previous governments

Modi said that all past Prime Ministers and governments deserve credit for the country's growth and no one can say that past governments did not do anything. "The growth of this country is because of all the Prime Ministers and all governments. We can never say that past government has done nothing. It is the demand of time that we make people aware of the sanctity and strength of our Constitution," he said.

Saluting Dr BR Ambedkar for the Constitution:

Lauding Dr. BR Ambedkar for his contribution to the making of the Indian Constitution, the Prime Minister said that Babasaheb consumed all the poison and gave India 'amrit' in the form of the Constitution. He added that the spirit of the parliamentary debates and Constitution is not about one or two individuals, but about the entire country.

Envisaging the need to follow constitutional measures for maintaining democracy:

"If Constitution simply becomes a document to be followed by the government then democracy will suffer, that's why it needs to reach the roots. To strengthen our democracy, it is important for people to know about all the aspects of our Constitution. If we wish to maintain democracy, we must maintain and uphold constitutional measures. Constitution's purpose is not just to define three organs of the state, but also limit their authority," the Prime Minister said.