Is one S. Jaishankar enough for India? External Affairs Minister responds

External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar on Saturday likened diplomats and ministers to Shri Hanuman, saying they “ultimately serve” Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Speaking at the Pune Book Festival, Jaishankar was asked if one Jaishankar is enough for the country. He called the question “wrong” and responded:

“Your question is the wrong question. You should have actually asked me: there is only one Modi. Because ultimately the diplomats… even Shri Hanuman finally serves…” — leaving the reference to Lord Ram incomplete.

He emphasised that countries are shaped by leadership and vision, while diplomats and officials execute that vision.
“Countries are defined by leaders and vision. There are people who execute it. But ultimately, it is the vision, the leadership, and the confidence that makes the difference today,” he said.

‘Lord Krishna and Hanuman were the greatest diplomats’

Jaishankar also drew on Indian mythology to highlight India’s strategic traditions. He stressed the importance of using Indian terms, concepts, and contexts in strategic thinking, citing Lord Krishna and Hanuman as examples.

“Most of the textbooks you get are written by Western people… I was tired of reading again and again that we are very strategic, but India has no tradition of strategy and statecraft… We have grown up with our beliefs, our culture. We don’t use our own terms, and the world doesn’t know our own terms either… It was this feeling that was growing in me… I want to explain to the world what I have felt for a long time,” Jaishankar said, according to ANI.

He noted that while the Mahabharata is often seen as a story of power, struggle, and family, the Ramayana also contains complex tactics, strategy, and planning.

“So, actually, when someone asked me, ‘Who, in your view, are the greatest diplomats?’ I said Lord Krishna and Hanuman. Because one is the great diplomat of the Mahabharata, the other is a great diplomat of the Ramayana,” he added.