- “Bharat Summit will help build ideas for a new kind of politics in India and the world,” says Senior Congress Leader
- Congress and progressive parties from 100 countries Pass Hyderabad Resolution with 44-Point Agenda on ‘Delivering Global Justice’
- German Social Democratic Party and Australian Labor Party Leaders Back INC’s Vision for Global Justice at Bharat Summit 2025
- Lars Klingbeil of Germany and Wayne Swan of Australia express solidarity with Congress-led call for equality, rule of law, and people-first governance
450+ global delegates, 100 nations, one united call — delivering global justice from Hyderabad to the world
In what is probably one of the first of its kind conference, the Govt. of Telangana, India in collaboration with Samruddha Bharat Foundation, an NGO based in New Delhi, India, hosted the first edition of the Bharat Summit- a global conference to mark the 70th anniversary of the historic Bandung Conference that laid the foundation for the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM), bringing together over 450 delegates representing progressive parties from 100 countries to ‘deliver global justice’.
The Summit began with the INC along with participating political parties from over 100 nations joining a candle-light vigil, in solidarity with the victims of the terror attack in Pahalgam, J&K and registering a strong stance against cross border terrorism. The vigil, led by Telangana CM Revant Reddy, was joined by several senior Congress leaders like Salman Khurshid and Gurdeep Singh Sappal.
The theme of the Summit, which included incumbent and former ministers from EU, Africa and Asia and the US as well heads of political parties and think tanks, was to rethink and deliver global justice- social, economic, ecological and geo-political.
For the first time, international alliances like Progressive Alliance, Progressive International, NAM, SocDem and others shared a stage to address common threats and concerns facing countries globally. Apart from senior ministers of the Telangana Government and several prominent leaders from the Opposition alliance of India including Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi, the Summit was attended by former ministers and incumbent members of Parliament from across the world. Anne Linde, Former Foreign Minister of Sweden, Bert Koenders, Former Foreign Minister, Netherlands, Jorge Taiana, Speaker of Mercosur, Former Foreign Minister & Former Defence Minister, Argentina, Monica Fein, President Socialist Party of Argentina, Arena Williams, MP, Labour Party, New Zealand were among some of the speakers and delegates at the Summit.
Apart from the fact that the Summit hosted over 450 leaders from social-democratic parties to ‘rethink global justice’, the Summit’s timing was significant since it was organised to mark 70 years of the Bandung Conference. But while the Bandung Conference was attended by 29 parties and the NAM hosted 56 parties, the Bharat Summit expanded its umbrella to bring within its ambit over 100 countries from 5 continents.
In a significant milestone, Congress leaders and global delegates collectively adopted the Hyderabad Resolution, a 44-point agenda under the theme ‘Delivering Global Justice’. The resolution reaffirms a shared commitment to the values of freedom, equality, justice, and solidarity, uniting social-democratic, socialist, and labour movements from around the world. Key agenda items include reshaping the economic paradigm, advancing environmental justice, striving for gender equality and social inclusion, defending democracy and social justice, working for peace and human security, and reforming global institutions. Underscoring the common concerns of rollback of democratic rights and freedom, of the sustained attack on civil liberties, undermining of institutions, disregarding multilateral agreements, spreading lies and fuel division, the Resolution highlights the role it envisages for the progressives to collectively take on.
Senior Congress Leader and Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi delivered a powerful address reflecting on the changing nature of democratic politics around the world. He called for a political shift from fear and hatred to listening, empathy, and love.
“Democratic politics has fundamentally changed. The rules that applied a decade ago don’t work anymore,” Gandhi said, pointing to how concentrated capital and media control have reshaped the political landscape.
“This is the new politics—where the opposition is not engaged with but crushed. All our avenues were compromised, including the media. That’s when we reached back into history and decided to walk from Kanyakumari to Kashmir—a 4,000-kilometre journey.”
Reflecting on his Bharat Jodo Yatra, Gandhi shared two key lessons: “First, our opponents have a monopoly on anger and fear—we cannot fight them on that ground. But during the yatra, I discovered the transformative power of listening. I spoke less and listened more, and that changed everything.”
The second lesson, he said, was about embracing love in politics. “Until the yatra, I had never used the word ‘love’ in politics. But once I did, people began to respond. Love and affection can disrupt hate more powerfully than any argument.”
Rahul Gandhi concluded by saying, “Disagreements on policy will always exist. But while their lens is anger, hatred, and fear, our lens must be love, affection, and deep listening. I am confident this summit will help build the ideas we need for a new kind of politics in India and the world.”
Agreeing with the vision of the Bharat Summit, Senior German politician Lars Klingbeil of the Social Democratic Party said, “The topics being discussed at the Bharat Summit are closely related to the issues we are facing in Germany. Our international rules-based order has come under great pressure. There are attempts to disrupt this order and to replace the ‘rule of law’ with the ‘rule of might.’ These developments must stop.”
Wayne Swan, National President of the Labor Party and former Deputy Prime Minister of Australia, said, “We believe in the power of public policy to change people’s lives. In this era of hyper-individualism and the growing influence of oligarchs, it is becoming increasingly difficult to secure economic equality.”
He also added that party activism has never been more important, particularly in the face of rising fascism and the concentration of power among oligarchs in countries like the United States.
Telangana Chief Minister Shri Revanth Reddy, addressing international delegates, showcased his government’s progressive welfare policies. “We have implemented the largest farmer debt waiver in India—Rs 20,674 crore—and provide over Rs 20,000 crore annually in agricultural subsidies,” he said. Highlighting women’s empowerment, he added, “Our women entrepreneurs are competing with Adani and Ambani.”
Deputy Chief Minister Shri Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka noted that the presence of over 450 international delegates had provided the right platform to exchange ideas on global justice and peace, in alignment with Rahul Gandhi’s vision of NYAY.
The Bharat Summit is poised to be a defining moment for the global progressive movement, committed to a democratic, liberal, and just world order, while honouring India’s legacy in global peace and justice.