Silence is not always golden

Twitter #hashtags are demanding the scalp of the teen deviyan of the BJP: Ms Vasundhara Raje, Ms Sushma Swaraj and Ms Smriti Irani. They are under fire for different reasons, but the family of #Twitterhashtags doesn’t differentiate. 

The Congress-backed groups on social media have come up with their own version: ‘#Maunmodi’ is their conclusion! They say the man who converted political communication into a much-hyped skill has gone on the path of his predecessor when it comes to really speaking on serious charges levelled against his ministerial colleagues. It’s this silence from  Prime Minister  Narendra Modi which is, frankly, most baffling.

On Sunday, while listening to Mr Modi’s Mann ki Baat radio address, one couldn’t help but sense the total hollowness of his appeals and claims. To the poor farmer toiling in the heat of Bundelkhand, the Prime Minister’s address is nothing beyond temporary entertainment. But if he would have chosen to address some of the allegations levelled against his Ministers, maybe he would have increased the number of his listeners. 

Frankly, you only have to look at the entire political history of Mr Modi to figure out whether he ever defends his own. As the Chief Minister of Gujarat, Mr Modi was used to facing charges and allegations. However, more often than not, those charges were always directed against his own self. As a Chief Minister, he would invoke Gujarati asmita to deflect any attack on his own image. He had, afterall, proudly declared himself to be the custodian of five crore Gujaratis. 

This columnist honestly does not remember Mr Modi speaking out, even when his own Home Minister, now BJP president, Mr Amit Shah, went to jail in alleged fake encounter cases. But what may have worked for him then, doesn’t seem to be working now. At least the country deserves to know whether the Prime Minister, who made such tall claims on transparency and corruption-free Government, is backing his Ministers or not.

Mr Modi’s silence has given momentum to this entire lalitgate and Ms Irani controversy. Now, Mr Modi finds himself in a conundrum. Not having spoken so far, he has given mixed signals about his intentions. If he speaks out it in Parliament, it will look as if he has ceded space to the Opposition. It’s reminiscent of the UPA’s strategy when the regime was hit by 2G Spectrum revelations. An entire Winter Session of Parliament was wasted over demands for a Joint Parliamentary Committee in 2010. Then, Mr Manmohan Singh was repeatedly criticised for not speaking his mind out. Mr Modi’s silence may well end up giving the Opposition a 2G-kind of issue. That too on a platter.

The larger question to raise though is: Why would a man like Mr Modi, who gives so much importance to public-media-image management, be losing this perceptional battleIJ Afterall, he is the leader of the party which achieved its goal largely by constantly attacking the credibility of the Congress. Hasn’t Mr Modi’s own image taken a beating because of this crisisIJ Throughout the election campaign in 2014, he never failed to remind us that he believed in speaking his mind out. He was almost itching for a US-style presidential debate with Mr Rahul Gandhi and Mr Manmohan Singh. 

He knew it well that their debating skills were no match to the fire power he possessed as an orator. It’s that oratory which he desparately needs today to get himself out of this mess. That’s why it’s said that in politics, it doesn’t take long for your biggest asset to be quickly reduced to a weakness. Afterall, why are we posing this question of the Prime Minister breaking his silence at allIJ Isn’t it to do with the fact that we are so used to listening to him at multiple foraIJ When you keep speaking, people get used to a certain style. It’s almost like you are expected to speak to your audiences. Now Mr Modi, your audience has got used to listening to your talking. That’s the main reason why it’s asking you to speak.

Mr Modi is not Mr Singh. It’s no secret that Mr Singh lacked a political mandate within his Government. He couldn’t speak on critical issues because he was never sure of his own positioning within. Yes, the Congress president always backed him. But it didn’t mean that he was backed by others from his party or within his Government. 

But with Mr Modi, the reality is totally different. He commands an almost unbeatable position within the BJP and the Government. He does not need to look behind his shoulders. Yet he has chosen to remain silent. His critics point out that the RSS isn’t happy with Mr Modi’s style of functioning. Are we to understand that Mr Modi isn’t speaking because he is looking for support from the parent body in this time of crisisIJ 

The argument that since the BJP president, the Home Minister and the Finance Minister have all spoken in favour of the beleaguered three women leaders of the party, Mr Modi  does not need to speak, doesn’t work in Mr Modi’s case. It’s precisely for the above mentioned reason. If Mr Modi is the face and voice of this Government, he must then be the person who should be seen leading from the front in this moment of crisis. 

Every election that the BJP has fought since Mr Modi appeared on the national scene, has been in Mr Modi’s name. Every big move which has been made by the Government has been credited to Mr Modi only. If you look at the tweets of all top Union Ministers, rarely does a day pass when they do not thank the Prime Minister for some move or the other. 

When you assume such a high pedestal for yourself, you are bound to be questioned more aggressively in times of crisis. That’s the dilemma for Mr Modi. If he doesn’t resolve it soon, the damage it will inflict upon his image may end up moving towards an irreversible mode.

(The writer is a senior television journalist)