Republic Day Must Go Beyond Ceremonies, Says Mehbooba Mufti | Kashmir Life

SRINAGAR: Peoples Democratic Party president Mehbooba Mufti on Monday said Republic Day should be more than ceremonial parades and speeches, stressing that the occasion symbolises the constitutional rights that allow citizens to live with dignity.

Republic Day must be more than parades and speeches.
15 August 1947 gave us freedom from colonial rule, but 26 January 1950 gave us the constitutional right to live that freedom with dignity guaranteeing freedom of speech and religion, and above all the power to vote.
Our… pic.twitter.com/hTw8IRFDsR

— Mehbooba Mufti (@MehboobaMufti) January 26, 2026

In a post on social media platform X, Mufti said that while August 15, 1947, marked freedom from colonial rule, January 26, 1950, gave Indians the constitutional framework to exercise that freedom through guarantees of free speech, freedom of religion and the right to vote.

She said the Constitution created strong institutions to safeguard these rights and values, but alleged that many of these institutions are now being “weaponised” to undermine the very idea of India.

Mufti’s remarks came on the eve of Republic Day celebrations across the country, amid renewed political debate over the functioning of constitutional institutions and the state of democracy.