PM Modi meets the press at the White House and demonstrates his top position in world leadership
India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi speaks during a news conference with President Joe Biden in the East Room of the White House in Washington, on June 22, 2023.
The Western press had a plan to trap PM Narendra Modi over rabid and loaded questions. However Modi surprised them by taking them head on at the White House press conference.
After all India is a vibrant democracy, the world’s oldest and where the Press has full freedom to report everything, as long as they function within the laws as established by the Indian Parliament and the Indian Supreme Court. In case any one breaks it, even if it is the BBC, it will face the consequences.
After BBC was chastised over tax evasion there has been wide spread campaign in Western media that there has been a steady decline in press freedom in India. Well look who is talking….same people who will not talk about prosecution of the Press freedom fighter Assange and never discuss the ghastly reasoning behind creating the American Prison in Guantanamo Bay.
The White House administration’s were bluntly told by Indian officials that any kind of Press Conference would be fine. However since now India looks at the World affairs through its own prism, then answers to any loaded questions may not be to the liking of the USA. The White House understood the firmness. It had become clear to them that they were not dealing with someone from Nicaragua or Pakistan but a country which was now at par with them.
At the Press Conference an Indian reporter asked about addressing climate change. An American reporter did press Modi on human rights concerns – a particularly delicate topic as, Indians too have shown huge concern over deteriorating Human Rights conditions in the USA along with rampant display of racism. Presently the United States seeks closer ties with India as a bulwark against China’s influence in the region.
Modi demonstrated India’s confidence by saying “democracy runs in our veins” and insisting that there is “absolutely no space for discrimination.”
Modi, who is 72, has been granting interviews since becoming Chief Minister of Gujarat around 21years back and India’s leader nine years ago. However as he is quite blunt and to the point during foreign visits when asked questions he’ll defer to specialist advisors on stage with him.
This is to ensure that true fact and bluntness do not hinder closer ties.
Modi clearly demonstrated this last year in Germany, when the two countries announced a clean energy deal. The German Press not comfortable with India catching up with Germany was out to spoil the deal.
Modi is active on social media where hundreds of millions follow him, hosts a monthly radio program where he directly connects with listeners, and often makes big speeches. He uses these platforms to highlight government programs, inaugurate infrastructure projects and express condolences when an accident or tragedy strikes.
But Modi does not follow the Congress tradition, where every Minister utters what he wants, on any matter / incident even when it is non of his business.
Modi remains silent on day to incidents, as every matter should not be intervened by the PM straight away. The Panchayats, district administration, State Govt, Central Ministries and Departments and the Society have their distinct responsibilities and roles.
PM keeps a steady and intervenes only when warranted. Religious minorities have been free to practice their religion in India but mischief makers and a part of the biased media is always out to turn even normal criminal activities into Communal clashes and violence. Naturally Modi has also not commented on current ethnic violence started by vested interests in India’s remote northeast.
The Western media and its cohorts in India keep harping on decline in press freedom, which is bunkum in the least. India has the highest Press freedom comparable to any country in the World. Also talking about The country this year’s Press Freedom Index published by Reporters Without Borders, we all know how these things are done. Now even India can play the GREAT GAME equally well.
The organization cited violence against journalists and a partisan media landscape as reasons that “press freedom is in crisis in the world’s largest democracy. “With an average of three or four journalists killed in connection with their work every year, India is one of the world’s most dangerous countries for media,” the report said.
India’s foreign minister, Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, dismissed the report’s claims at an event last month.
In recent years, journalists have been arrested and some are stopped from traveling abroad. Naturally if they carry out anti India activities. Dozens are facing criminal prosecution, including for sedition. At the same time, the government has introduced sweeping regulatory laws for social media companies that give it more power to police online content.
A number of media outlets have also been subjected to tax searches, most recently the BBC after it aired a documentary that tried to question not only Modi’s role as the Chief Minister (had taken over then for the first time) in 2002 communal riots in the state of Gujarat. The BBC has shown its venomous face by even indirectly questioning the Indian Supreme Court, which had exonerated Shri Modi of all charges which Press had tried to fabricate against him.
Did they highlight Godhara incident and such riots during British time and later from 1947 to 2000. Also BBC should have first examine the heinous role of Winston Churchill in the Great famine of Bengal, where millions had perished.
The motive of BBC in raising the 20 year old issue was quite evident. So the two-part BBC program drew an immediate backlash from the Indian government, which invoked emergency powers under its information technology laws to block it from being shown in the country. Social media platforms including Twitter and YouTube also complied with government requests to remove links to the documentary.
Well to resolve the issue ask the USA to drop all charges against Assange, the young Marine who leaked so called SECRETS and every other such person. Then in India also BBC and every one of the defaulting members of Press can be spared from the regulatory laws.
