PATNA, Sept. 29 -- Vice-President CP Radhakrishnan on Sunday said that the concept of dharma has been the unifying force of India, binding its people together despite linguistic diversity. "One dignitary from Europe once asked me how India remains united despite having no common language. I replied that the people here may speak in different tongues, but they remain united through the concept of dharma," Radhakrishnan said while addressing the valedictory session of the third edition of the Unmesha International Literature Festival, organised by the Sahitya Akademi in Patna. The Vice President said Indians are held together by shared cultural and spiritual bonds, adding that Unmesha had brought to life the vision of "Ek Bharat, Shreshtha Bharat." He underlined that literature, languages, and culture across the country express common values and help bridge divides. Highlighting Bihar's pivotal role in shaping India's civilisational identity, Radhakrishnan said that many believe democracy originated in the West, but in fact, Bihar is the birthplace of democracy, which flourished in Vaishali 2,500 years ago. "Bihar is the land of rich culture, dharma and knowledge. It gave birth to Sita, Lord Buddha, and Lord Mahavira, and was home to great universities like Nalanda and Vikramshila that made India an intellectual superpower of the ancient world," he said. The Vice President lauded the revival of Nalanda University, calling it a "symbol of India's status as Vishwaguru." He also recalled his memories of the Sampoorna Kranti movement led by Loknayak Jayaprakash Narayan, describing him as the flag-bearer of change in Indian politics. Talking to newspersons on the sidelines of the event about the recent Karur (Tamil Nadu) stampede in which 40 people were killed, Radhakrishnan expressed grief and urged people to remain calm during mass gatherings. "It was an unfortunate incident. I request people to control their emotions in large crowds. It should not happen again," he said, as the gathering observed a minute's silence in memory of the victims. Earlier, in his welcome address, Vivek Aggarwal, secretary in the ministry of culture, said Unmesha had created a deep and meaningful dialogue on India's rich literary traditions and benefitted speakers of many languages. He added that, given its success, the ministry was considering making the festival an annual event. He also spoke of Gyan Bharatam, a manuscript preservation initiative launched by the Prime Minister to safeguard ancient scripts and languages for future generations. Sahitya Akademi president Madhav Kaushik described Unmesha as a "literary Kumbh," while Bihar deputy chief minister Vijay Kumar Sinha and tourism minister Raju Kumar Singh thanked participants on behalf of the state. The four-day literary festival, which brought together around 550 writers from India and abroad, was earlier held in Shimla and Bhopal before finally coming to Patna this year....