'India Not Having Permanent Seat On Security Council...': Elon Musk Calls For Revision In UNSC; Netizens React

Billionaire Elon Musk stole the hearts of netizens after his remark about India not having a permanent seat at the Security Council at the United Nations. Musk eventually criticised that India being the most populous country and not having a seat at the UNSC, 'is absurd'. He believes there is a need for the revision in the UN bodies. And that was enough for netizens to applaud Musk on his remarks, many X users agreed with him.

Many applauded Musk for his bold remarks on the UNSC, as they highly agreed with him that India not having a permanent seat at the UNSC is absurd. Apart from this, many memes were made, applauding Musk for his bold statement. However, many also shared that there should be no UN bodies citing that they're corrupt.

Musk also said that Africa collectively should also have a permanent seat, however, netizens were not too keen on that.

It all started with António Guterres, the Security General of the UN, who tweeted via his X handler "How can we accept that Africa still lacks a single Permanent Member in the Security Council?" He went on to add, "Institutions must reflect today's world, not that of 80 years ago."

Guterres hinted that a revision in UN bodies is likely possible in the coming months. He said, "September's Summit of the Future will be an opportunity to consider global governance reforms & rebuild trust."

While Guterres backed the idea of giving Africa a permanent seat at the Security Council, this was widely disapproved by netizens. Many questioned why India still does not have a permanent membership, despite being the fastest-growing economy.

One user, Debaditya said, "India should be given the status of Permanent Member in UNSC which has been long due."

While another user Eurasian Emperor said, "Why does Africa belong on the Security Council? What have they contributed to global peace and prosperity? They have the lowest GDP on the planet and their diaspora is the lowest earning in every nation they live in."

A Supreme Court lawyer of India, Shashank Shekhar Jha also tweeted saying, "How can we accept that India still lacks a Permanent Membership in the Security Council?," adding, "Institutions must reflect today's world, not that of 80 years ago." He also said, "Without India, 1/6th of the entire human race go unrepresented. Absurd!."

Absurd is exactly what Elon Musk also felt over the fact that India still doesn't have a permanent seat at UNSC. He replied to a user Michael Eisenberg who questioned the same thing that netizens are asking, "What about India?" to Antonio Guterres. Eisenberg added, "Better yet is to dismantle the UN and build something new with real leadership."

In the Twitter thread, Musk said, "At some point, there needs to be a revision of the UN bodies." The Tesla CEO explained that the problem is that those with excess power don't want to give it up.

"India not having a permanent seat on the Security Council, despite being the most populous country on Earth, is absurd," Musk added.

A user named Praveen Sharma replied, "All the countries enjoying Veto power are not interested in sharing their privilege with anyone. That's the reason the UN is the most inefficient body globally. They are good for nothing. In the last 30-40 years they couldn't resolve any issue, they are just limited to supplying the aide material to war-tron country. They couldn't resolve any border dispute or could stop any war."

One user also queried about the standard procedure for the seat. She said, "What is the standard for them to gain a seat? Do they factor in the size and population or is it just a preferential system?" In favour of India, she added, "They occupy a large portion of the world it makes no sense that they are not included."

A user Vinit Shinde added, "Not only the most populous country but also the fastest growing Economy."

Apart from being a populous country, India's economy is the fastest growing in the global economy despite geopolitical risks and macro conditions.

Indian economy continues to dominate world economies by remaining resilient and above 7%. Beating estimates, India's GDP grew to a whopping 8.4% in Q3FY24, while its full-year growth rate stood at 7.4%.

RBI expects 7% GDP growth for overall FY25. Earlier, this week, IMF raised its GDP growth forecast for India to 6.8% for 2024-25, from earlier 6.5%.

IMF in its latest World Economic Outlook report said, "Growth in India is projected to remain strong at 6.8 per cent in 2024 and 6.5 per cent in 2025, with the robustness reflecting continuing strength in domestic demand and a rising working-age population."

So what is exactly the procedure for becoming a permanent member of the UNSC?

As per the UN website, membership in the Organization, by the Charter of the United Nations, "is open to all peace-loving States that accept the obligations contained in the United Nations Charter and, in the judgment of the Organization, can carry out these obligations".

UN's website said that states are admitted to membership in the United Nations by a decision of the General Assembly upon the recommendation of the Security Council.

Currently, there are 15 members of the UN Security Council. 5 are permanent members with veto power and these are China, France, Russia, the United Kingdom and the United States Of America.

While remaining 10 are non-permanent members, five of which are elected each year by the General Assembly for a two-year term.