Longest speech at the UN made by an Indian

Even as PM Narendra Modi addressed the UN General Assembly today, National Herald accessed an interesting anecdote pertaining to the longest speeches made at the UN.

As it were, it was the-then Defence Minister VK Krishna Menon who set the as-yet-unbroken record in 1957, when he spoke for 8 hours before the U.N. Security Council while defending India's rights to the territory of Kashmir, in the process earning widespread popularity and the sobriquet "Hero of Kashmir".

As per the UN website, Menon’s statement to the Security Council was given during three meetings on 23 and 24 January 1957. According to the times listed on the meeting records, the meetings lasted more than 8 hours.

Other long speeches:

26 September 1960: Fidel Castro of Cuba at the 872nd plenary meeting of the General Assembly: 269 minutes.

10 Oct. 1960: Mr. Sékou Touré, President, Guinea at the 896th Plenary: 144 minutes

23 Sep. 1960: Nikita Sergeyevich Khrushchev, Chairman of the Council of Ministers, USSR, 869th Plenary: 140 minutes

30 Sep. 1960: Dr. Soekarno, President, Indonesia, 880th Plenary: 121 minutes