From Mark Zuckerberg and Sunder Pichai to Tim Cook, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been making waves in Silicon Valley. Undoubtedly, the emphasis has been on solidifying the image of a ‘Digital India’ and so far, it looks like it’s been a success.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk personally took the PM on a guided tour of Tesla Motors, Mark Zuckerberg told Modi of his experiences in India during a Facebook townhall and Tim Cook of Apple even got a ‘Make in India’ invite from the PM.
Which brings us to our point. In October 2014, Tim Cook came out publicly as gay and the world applauded. Apple is and always has been a staunch supporter of gay rights. Recently the US legalised same-sex marriage throughout the country.
India however, still lags behind in this regard. With a regressive law like Section 377 still active, the question arises whether companies will be confident sending their LGBT employees to work in India.
Closer to home, our neighbour Nepal got the world nodding in approval when they included the rights of sexual minorities in their constitution. That change in perceptions is possible in India too and it isn’t too late to begin that transition.
When meeting with some of the world’s most powerful CEOs, Narendra Modi remarked that the “world is not going to wait for us”. The truth is, the world didn’t and it’s already changing. It’s time for our country to truly step up and show we’re capable of being a leader on the global stage.
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