Ajit Doval’s political pitch: India can’t afford coalition government for next 10 years

National Security Advisor (NSA) Ajit Doval – who is considered Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s most trusted attache – on Thursday said that India needs a stable government for the next 10 years as “weak coalitions” will make the country softer.

“India will need a strong, stable and a decisive government for the next 10 years to achieve our national, political, economic and strategic objectives. Weak coalition will be bad for India," Doval said.

The NSA said weak democracies make a country softer and India can’t afford that as it will have to take hard decisions in the coming decade.

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“Weakened democracies can tend to make a country a soft power. India cannot afford to be a soft power for the next few years. It will be compelled to take hard decisions,” he said.

Doval said that if a coalition government comes into the power, it will have to make compromises for its survival and in that situation, political interests will take precedence over the national interest.

“If it becomes a soft power then you have to make compromises. And when you have to make compromises then your political survival takes precedence over the national interest,” he said.

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The NSA said that “populist measures” shouldn't take precedence over the national requirements even if it causes short-term pain to the people. Doval was speaking on the topic “Dream India 2030 — Avoiding the pitfalls” at the Sardar Patel Memorial Lecture in New Delhi.