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Opinion National Interest PoV 50-Word Edit

ThePrint On Camera Videos In Pictures

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More Judiciary Education YourTurn Work With Us Campus Voice

How BJP recalls Manmohan Singh to explain falling rupee and justify PM Modi’s austerity

It’s bizarre that the BJP now suggests that the Modi government is doing the same as the Manmohan Singh government did in 2013.

Last week was all about spectacles. Prime Minister Narendra Modi cut down the size of his convoy to two cars. Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis rode a bike to office. Lest the target audience in the national capital missed it, Madhya Pradesh CM Mohan Yadav chose to ride the Delhi Metro. 

CMs, Union Ministers, and BJP leaders were all scrambling to follow the PM’s lead—allowing nothing between them and the cameras. Bihar CM Samrat Choudhary outdid them all, walking from his official residence to the state Secretariat—all of 300-400 metres. It was an ostentatious display of austerity. 

Why not continue it even after the camerapersons are gone? If our leaders can get by without those symbols of power for a day or so ostensibly to inspire the nation, they can surely do it every day. Who knows, the thought might have crossed PM Modi’s mind during his weekend visit to the Netherlands. Former Netherlands PM Mark Rutte used to cycle to the office. When he left office in 2024, he just cycled away. 

During PM Modi’s visit to the Netherlands in 2017, Rutte had gifted him a cycle. Modi couldn’t use it. It’s not just about his age. It’s about the distance in India. And the Prime Minister of a vast and complex country like India needs large security details and other facilities, necessitating a big convoy.  

BJP’s awkward defence

The display of austerity by India’s VIPs last week didn’t dissuade the Opposition from criticising the Rs 3 per litre hike in petrol and diesel prices and Rs 2 in CNG. The BJP’s response to the Congress criticism is rather befuddling, if not amusing. Look at the party’s long ‘X’ thread on 13 May. In trying to attack the previous Manmohan Singh government, the BJP’s ‘X’ posts ended up placing the Modi government in the same bracket in terms of their responses to the economic challenges. 

One of the posts read: “Congress attacking PM Modi on gold policy is peak hypocrisy. In 2013, after years of UPA economic mismanagement weakened the rupee and pushed the economy into crisis, then Union Finance........

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