Highlights
- The free press in India has a new covenant: we ask tough questions.
- But only to the Opposition with former Congress president Rahul Gandhi being the one leader held relentlessly to account by the media.
Rahul Gandhi needs to resign as the Prime Minister of India along with his entire incompetent place-holder Cabinet.
Ever since he won his second term in 2019, Gandhi has been playing havoc with the democratic system, appointing hardline “liberals” to all important jobs, refusing to be held accountable by the free press and attacking every institution that makes up the world’s largest democracy.
Gandhi has refused to learn any lessons. As the public health emergency triggered by coronavirus spreads out of control across the country, Gandhi has had the gall to tell India to bang thalis. And, imagine Indian citizens have so much faith in Gandhi that they did. Now of course he’s disappeared on us.
Gandhi has always fancied himself on a global scale, pranced around all over the world, hugging leaders in beautifully staged photo-opportunities. I still remember that picture of him with Chinese President Xi Jinping on a swing. Now we seem to be the victims of Chinese aggression, but Gandhi refuses to tell us. I actually blame India’s first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru.
Gandhi has also managed to mess up our filial relationship with our neighbour Nepal. They now claim Indian land in their new map. But for this I will blame Gandhi’ father and mother - Rajiv and Sonia Gandhi. One eminent and erudite intellectual has publicly said: “After his non-Hindu wife Sonia Gandhi was not allowed to enter Kathmandu’s Pashupatinath temple by its priests who declared only Hindus could enter, Rajiv Gandhi ordered a blockade of Nepal that enormously damaged the bilateral relationship with.”
Surprised my dear readers of SWAT analysis in Gulf News?
Don’t be.
I am merely holding up a mirror to the Modi government and huge sections of the Indian media.
The free press in India has a new covenant: we ask tough questions. But only to the Opposition with former Congress president Rahul Gandhi being the one leader held relentlessly to account by the media.
Huge sections of the mainstream media have no questions at all for the Modi government as they function as the force multipliers of the Central government, holding endless Roman circus-like debates where they hold the four generations the of the Gandhi family to account.
Modi has spent all of his first and now a year of his second term directing his army to hold the Opposition responsible for all the decisions he has taken.
You have venerable editors who have set up digital operations holding the tiny section of powerless liberals to account for the tanking Indian economy. The editor also gets daily columns printed as to what a huge flop Gandhi is and how inconsequential he is to politics. Yes, daily columns. The Modi Cabinet does near relay multiple press conferences to attack every Gandhi tweet, but also tells us on a daily basis how absolutely insignificant Gandhi is.
Puzzled?
Don’t be.
The Modi government does not like any scrutiny or criticism.
So what do the Panna Pramukhs of the BJP do?
They attack the Opposition for all the acts of government.
So Nehru let India down on China and Gandhi should tell us why the Chinese have decided to get aggressive. Ministers go red in the face as they shout that Gandhi is weakening India by asking pesky questions. Questions are an act of sedition these days. And in absolutely pin-drop silence without any counter questioning we report the ministers attacking Gandhi.
Blame Rahul for the rains too
Gandhi has been so pilloried by the BJP that soon we will be holding him responsible for bad monsoons as well. Gandhi is such a natural alibi for all failures. These days, we battle the coronavirus pandemic, while Amit Shah, Union Home Minister, continues to indulge in his favourite past-time of pulling down Opposition governments and we still blame the Congress.
Yes, the media in India blames the Opposition for trying to save its governments when nine-figure offers are made to legislators. Despite the pandemic, Shah pulled down the Congress government in Madhya Pradesh in March, but it was still the Congress’s fault.
What did the media do?
Well, we also refer to Shah with the respectful prefix of “Chanakya,” you know like we use Mahatma for Gandhi.
The media only applauds Shah’s masterstrokes, especially against the Opposition. We have set our own limits -- we can only hail Modi and Shah. And question Gandhi.
Don’t ask us about bias and holding the government to account. We need to show you some baby Taimur distraction.
Distracted?
Ok, so let’s go back to normal services - Gandhi destroyed the economy with demonetisation.
