In the past when the United States, releasing a toolbox of lies, fabrications and straight-out chicanery, was making its case for an attack on Iraq, talk program host Bill Maher was among the loudest of the cynics.
For his discomforts, his program was canceled; he was identified anti-national; fans of the war stated that Maher disliked America. His reaction was a standup program where he noted every dumb thing the Bush administration was doing, and the refrain was ‘I do not dislike my nation– I am simply humiliated by it.”
I now see what he implied.
Defence MinisterRajnath Singh states that due to PM Modi’s efforts, the Ukraine war was stopped briefly for 6 hours to assist in the evacuation of Indian trainees. He states this on January 11, 2024. He states this not in some event of Modi-worshippers however in England, where he is on a main go to. That claim, which when it initially appeared throughout the early days of Russia’s attack on Ukraine was all the rage on WhatsApp groups, had actually been unmasked as far back as March 2022. The MEA, not one to avoid Modi praise, needed to formally state that there was no reality to– “definitely unreliable” were the words representative Arindam Bagchi had actually utilized then. And yet, 2 years down the line, Rajnath Singh …
Mentioning the MEA, External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar, who has actually been attempting to insert India as a celebration to the continuous US-UK joint strike versus Houthi pirates in the Red Sea, states thatthe UN’s significance has actually been decreasing and now, “New Delhi is sought advice from in every significant worldwide problem. The world has actually pertained to us.” Obviously India’s “Covid diplomacy” was one factor– keep in mind how we assured to immunize the world and after that discovered we didn’t have enough even for our own individuals and needed to break our guarantees? And the other factor, he states, is the “effective hosting” of the G-20 Summit– if that suffices factor for the world to flock to India, we need to take pleasure in the spotlight while it lasts since see, from 1 December 2023, the presidency of the G-20 had actually altered hands and it is now with Brazilian president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva who, in elections in 2015, had actually beat Modi’s buddy Bolsonaro.
Still sticking with the MEA, “little” Maldives has actually released a final notice that all Indian soldiers based in the island country require to go out by March 15. At the really exact same occasion in Nagpur where he made his “world has actually pertained to us” claim, Jaishankar in reaction to a concernabout the row with Maldives stated “Politics is politics” which he could not ensure that every nation will support and concur with India whenever. Oh?
Apropos, keep in mind when thefederal government chosethat Modi’s design of diplomacy would be taught in Indian universities? Most likely the course will be entitled How To Lose Friends and Make Enemies.
And after that there is Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal,who statesthat the Indian rupee has actually enhanced under the Modi federal government– a declaration so unusual even the Finance Minister need to have blanched. (For the record, the rupee-dollarcurrency exchange rateis presently the greatest ever in the history of our currency).
While on ministers and unusual declarations, there is the ever trusted Ashwini Vaishnav who, at the most recent edition of the Vibrant Gujarat Summit, mentionedModi’s visionof signing up with Mumbai and Ahmedabad with a bullet train. The work is practically total, he stated. There is “complete preparation” for the very first train to run in 2026, he stated. (This would be the very same bullet traindue for conclusionin August 2022?). The bullet train, Vaishnav stated, would run in between Surat and Bilimora in 2026.
Wait, what? Bilimora? Vaishnav is describing the city in Navsari district, Gujarat? It is 66 km from Surat by roadway, 51 km by rail, and trains normally takeunder an hourto cover the range.This is the bullet train Modi’s vision will supply, 4 years after due date, constantly presuming the date does not get pressed even more back? (Once you get to Bilimora, note, Mumbai is still 218 km away).
Seriously– I am ashamed. In passing, keep in mind that all these declarations was available in the course of simply 7 days.
There is our media. The Adani-owned NDTV, for example, has“live updates” on an unique routine Modi has actually started ahead of the Ayodhya temple inauguration. And simply the other day, NDTV had ‘BREAKING NEWS’ splashed throughout its channel and on social networks: to wit, Modi fed cowsat his home on the event of Makar Sankranti. The channel, whose viewership has actually been decreasing since Adani took control of, therefore offers a completely brand-new significance to “breaking news”.
Ex-NDTV anchor Sreenivasan Jain, in addition to Mariyam Alavi and Scroll’s Supriya Sharma, have actually launched a book called Love Jihad and Other Fictionsan effort to take a look at and unmask a few of the viral frauds roiling the country. I got the book on Kindle, however am yet to read it).
NDTV however is amateur area compared to ANI. The declared news firm sent its press reporters to the Maldives toask foreign travelersto that nation abouttheir experiencesin India. And to cover all bases, ANI likewise spoke with a traveler who hadsimply returnedfrom the Maldives and who states Indian islands are extremely affordable. Attempt and think of the editorial conference in which they createdthatconcept. (And obviously, the typical ‘blue tick’ influencers leapt in to promote this with the addendum that thismarks a problemfor Maldivian president Muizzu).
Did I point out that I am humiliated?
Once again, sundry ministers and the media are little fry– for luxury face-palm minutes you have to look to the professionals. And none so professional as Prime Minister Modi, seen here actively bring a pail of water and a mop to a tree within the Shree Kalaram Mandir and rearranging a few of that water around the base of the tree. He was, we are informed, “cleaning up the temple”. (Makes me question who cleaned up the other parts noticeable in the video).
NDTV has more to state about the occasion, consisting of the wonderful minute when priests sang the ‘Yudh Kand” area of the Ramayana in Marathi, and an AI translationtool made surethat Modi heard all of it in Hindi. Cool. Need to have taken ages, however– the Yudha Kandam of the Valmiki Ramayana is 128 chapters (sargams) long, starting with Ram taking Hanuman into his arms to seal the anti-Ravana alliance, and ending with the Pattabhishekham, Ram’s crowning in Ayodhya.
And after that there is BJP president JP Nadda, surrounded by video cameras (one cameraman caught 2 others in the opening frame) cleaning up some other temple (Again, the uncleaned parts look pristine). The reward comes when Nadda finds some grit on the flooring, chooses it up in between finger and thumb, and holds it out for some guy in a match to come take it from him. (My other half, who saw this, states it advises her of the guy who pertains to clean our home. “I wind up bring and bring for him,” she cribbed).
Amateur. Modiji would never ever have actually permitted numerous individuals in the frame! pic.twitter.com/CNKJyBkuzR
— Cow Momma (@Cow__Momma) January 14, 2024
Politics are 4 individuals acting & & 20 others viewing … pic.twitter.com/cOgOIspKgC
— Брат (@B5001001101) January 15, 2024
Seriously. I am ashamed. How, and when, did we become this nation?
Post Script:
Not to rain on anybody’s parade of recklessness, however around the exact same time Modi and Nadda and sundry others were cleaning up clean temples, the National Statistical Office launchedfinancial informationfor December 2023– which, to name a few things, reveals that retail inflation has actually risen to a four-month high, while the Index of Industrial Production has actually slipped to an eight-month low.
Somewhere else,the news wasthat India’s leading 4 business “report 50,000 fall in headcount over in 2015”– a coy method of stating half a lakh staff members were laid off by simply 4 business alone.
In yet another indication of how our organizations are decreasing, the Bombay High Court hasapproved bailto a male of “childhood” (he is 26) implicated of raping a 13-year-old woman. The sexual relationship was,the judge stateda case of love and not desire. Obviously the judge– a girl– hasn’t become aware of statutory rape.
Yeah, Modi fed cows on the event of Makar Sankranti, which he could not even pronounce properly. Honestly, I am beyond ashamed.
Prem Panicker is a reporter.
This short article initially appeared on the author’s blog site