Lal Bahadur Shastri Quotes

The preservation of freedom, is not the task of soldiers alone. The whole nation has to be strong.

We believe in peace and peaceful development, not only for ourselves but for people all over the world.

True democracy or the swaraj of the masses can never come through untruthful and violent means.

We all have to work in our respective spheres with the same dedication, the same zeal and the same determination which inspired and motivated the warrior on the battle front. And this has to be shown not by mere words, but by actual deeds.

That loyalty to the country comes ahead of all other loyalties. And this is an absolute loyalty, since one cannot weight it in terms of what one receives.

The basic idea of governance, as I see it, is to hold the society together so that it can develop and march towards certain goals.

Success in science and scientific work come not through the provision of unlimited or big resources, but in the wise and careful selection of problems and objectives. Above all, what is required is hard sustained work and dedication.

We have now to fight for peace with the same courage and deter-mination as we fought against aggression.

The rule of law should be respected so that the basic structure of our democracy is maintained and further strengthened.

India will have to hang down her head in shame if even one person is left who is said in any way to be untouchable.

Those who govern must see how the people react to administration. Ultimately, the people are the final arbiters.

The economic issues are most vital for us and it is of the highest importance that we should fight our biggest enemies - Poverty, unemployment.

If Pakistan has any ideas of annexing any part of our territories by force, she should think afresh. I want to state categorically that force will be met with force and aggression against us will never be allowed to succeed.

There comes a time in the life of every nation when it stands at the cross-roads of history and must choose which way to go. But for us there need be no difficulty or hesitation, no looking to right or left. Our way is straight and clear—the building up of a socialist democracy at home with freedom and prosperity for all, and the maintenance of world peace and friendship with all nations.

Among the major tasks before us none is of greater importance for our strength and stability than the task of building up the unity and solidarity of our people.

We want freedom for our country, but not at the expense or exploitation of others, not us to degrade other countries...I want the freedom of my country so that other countries may learn something from my free country so that the resources of my country might be utilized for the benefit of mankind.

Sampling out corruption is a very tough job, but I say so in all seriousness that we would be failing in our duty if we do not tackle this problem seriously and with determination.