Citing that Pathan never compromised with his thoughts and vision, Gadkari, said the sign of thinkers is to always put forth their express views fearlessly in the interest of country and society

PUNE: Union minister Nitin Gadkari has said the biggest test of democracy is that the ruler tolerates even the strongest opinion against him, and it leads to introspection.Writers and intellectuals should express themselves fearlessly,

PUNE: The real test of democracy is whether the person at the helm of affairs is able to tolerate the strongest opinion against him and introspect, Union road transport and highways minister Nitin Gadkari said Friday at a university event.

Union Minister Nitin Gadkari said the biggest test of democracy is that the king (ruler) tolerates and introspects even the strongest opinion against him.

In India, there is no problem of difference of opinion but "there is a problem of lack of opinion," the Road Transport and Highways Minister said.

Union minister Nitin Gadkari said on Friday that “the biggest test of democracy is that the king tolerates the strongest opinion against him and introspects over it”, reported PTI. While Gadkari did not clarify if his remark was directed at a specific person, it seemed to be a veiled criticism of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Union minister Nitin Gadkari stressed the importance of tolerating strong opinions in a democracy and encouraged thinkers to express their views freel