President's Independence Day eve address 'insightful': PM Modi

NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi today tonight termed as "insightful" the address by President Pranab Mukherjee in which he said Parliament has been converted into a combat arena and observed that institutions of democracy are under stress.

"An insightful address by Rashtrapati ji on the eve of Independence Day," Modi tweeted. He also posted the President's address on his twitter handle.

Earlier, addressing the nation on the eve of 69th Independence Day, Mukherjee expressed concern over the apparent fractious politics and Parliament when he said "the roots (of vibrant democracy) are deep but the leaves are beginning to wilt. It is time for renewal."

He said Parliament has been converted into an arena of combat rather than debate, in comments that came against the backdrop of a washed out monsoon session.

"If the institutions of democracy are under pressure, it is time for serious thinking by people and their parties... If we do not act now, will our successors seven decades hence remember us with the respect and admiration we have for those who shaped the Indian dream in 1947? The answer may not be comfortable but the question has to be asked."