At a banquet hosted by Prez Murmu…
Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto's ‘Indian DNA’ remark left Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar, and others in splits at a banquet hosted by President Droupadi Murmu.
The Indonesian President was the chief guest at Sunday's Republic Day parade in Delhi. He made the witty remark on Saturday evening at the banquet, held in his honour at the Rashtrapati Bhavan in the national capital.
While everyone, including Subianto himself, began laughing, Vice President Dhankhar, seated to the Indonesian leader's right, and PM Modi, sitting to the chief guest's left, were most amused.
Subianto, meanwhile, further said, “We (Indonesia and India) have civilizational links, even now a very important part of our language comes from Sanskrit. Many names of Indonesia are actually Sanskrit names and in our daily life, the influence of ancient Indian civilisation is very strong. I think it's part of our genetics.”
He also hailed PM Modi's leadership, as well as the latter's commitment towards reducing poverty and helping the marginalized section.
Expressing his feeling of pride for being in India, the Indonesian President wished ‘prosperity, peace and greatness’ for the people of India.
"I am not a professional politician, I am not a good diplomat, I say what is in my heart. I came here for a few days but learned a lot from Prime Minister Narendra Modi's leadership and commitments," Subianto stated.
He is the fourth Indonesian President to be the chief guest of India's Republic Day parade. At the first parade, in 1950, Indonesia's Sukarno was the chief guest, followed by Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono (2011), Joko Widodo (2018), and now Subianto.
The Brief. Sign up to receive the top stories you need to know right now.