From playing the victim card to curbing dissent to their hatred for each other — Modi and Kejriwal seem to be cut from the same cloth.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi often berates the Nehru-Gandhi dynasty for not allowing him to work. According to him, many of his tall promises from the 2014 polls haven’t been fulfilled because of Jawaharlal Nehru (who died 54 years ago), Indira Gandhi (who died 34 years ago) and Rajiv Gandhi (who died 27 years ago).
Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal says the same – except instead of the Nehru-Gandhis, substitute Prime Minister Modi and the Lieutenant Governor of Delhi (regardless of who is in the chair).
From shifting the blame for their own shortcomings to a belief in the cult of personality, from ruthlessly curbing dissent to cutting even close aides to size, from always playing the victim card to the hatred they harbour for each other — in most things they do, Modi and Kejriwal seem to be cut from the same cloth.
The victim card
In May 2017, Kejriwal held an informal session with senior journalists where he answered a range of questions on everything from politics to his equation with the L-G to Modi, to why he had (then) stopped taking pot-shots at “Modiji” on Twitter or in his public utterances.
I wasn’t among those invited, but from what I could piece together from several conversations with those who were present, the two most important points made by Kejriwal that day were:
- Modi (through the L-G) will “never allow me to work”.
- Modi’s approval ratings (at the time) were so high that everything that one said against him backfired.
What was interesting was that along with Modi and the L-G, Kejriwal also had a bone to pick with the people of Delhi, who he felt weren’t realising how much his government was trying to do for them, and were queueing up to vote for the BJP.
Bear in mind, this session was held within days of the Aam Aadmi Party’s poor performance in the Delhi municipal elections, where the BJP retained all three corporations despite massive anti-incumbency. Kejriwal was down and out, as per the impression of at least two journalists present in that meeting.
Since then, Modi’s stock has visibly dipped, while Kejriwal has been granted a fresh lease of life by the Supreme Court through its verdict last week.
But Kejriwal will find a way to continue to play the victim, for he, like Modi, seems to think that victimhood and not performance will make the voters connect with him. Voters, he seems to think, like a “bechara” (helpless, or underdog). He would do well to feel the undercurrents of disenchantment that Modi’s erstwhile supporters are sending out.
When Kejriwal was throwing his latest tantrum at Raj Nivas, he and his supporters were upset that the Congress wasn’t supporting them. This is the same Kejriwal who had mocked Rahul Gandhi on TV in his grand dare to the PM – ‘Modiji, I am not Rahul Gandhi’. Why should Rahul Gandhi and the Congress provide oxygen to a political rival that is trying to eat into its vote-bank and misses no chance to ridicule them?
Personality cult
The current BJP is Narendra Modi’s BJP. All his rivals in the party have either been thrown out or have been forced into the sideshow.
Seniors like L.K. Advani and M.M. Joshi are now part of the woodwork, the so-called ‘Margdarshak Mandal’. Has this mandal ever met?
Contemporary rivals like Rajnath Singh, Sushma Swaraj and Nitin Gadkari are in the cabinet with important portfolios, over which, with the exception of Gadkari, they don’t seem to have much control.
Kejriwal is a step ahead. Where is Anna Hazare, whom Kejriwal (mis)used and then cleverly discarded? Prashant Bhushan and Yogendra Yadav – two persons who were as responsible for the meteoric rise of the AAP as Kejriwal himself – were mercilessly thrown out, while poet-politician Kumar Vishwas is reduced to using poetry to send out messages about him being slighted. The AAP is now synonymous with Kejriwal.
Like Modi, Kejriwal is ruthless and doesn’t tolerate dissent. ‘Inner-party democracy’ has been thrown out of the window.
Hatred for each other
Second only to their love for their own selves is the mutual antipathy Modi and Kejriwal harbour. Till he scored a series of self-goals, Kejriwal (and not Rahul Gandhi) was Modi’s big worry.
For Kejriwal, Modi personifies everything that is stalling his progress on the national stage. He thinks – and one would have to agree with him – that it is Modi who has given instructions to the L-G to stall everything that he wants to do.
Disdain for established institutions
Modi’s biggest achievement, if you want to call it that, since becoming Prime Minister is that he has overseen the systematic erosion in the credibility of all established institutions.
The CBI, the Enforcement Directorate, the Income Tax Department are now believed to be this government’s best tools to take on the opposition, while enough efforts have been made to make judiciary and transparency watchdogs like the Central Information Commission and the National Human Rights Commission redundant by keeping posts vacant or filling them with handpicked persons.
The Lokpal pipedream
In tiny Delhi, the Kejriwal government used its brute majority in the assembly to get a Jan Lokpal Bill passed – a bill that has several clauses that many not find favour with the courts.
But more importantly, possibly because it was never his intention to get the Lokpal operational, Kejriwal chose not to seek the Centre’s prior approval before tabling the bill in the assembly.
This way, he can blame the Centre and the L-G for Delhi not getting a Jan Lokpal. In constantly fighting with its own officers, the Kejriwal government’s aim seems to be to force the bureaucracy into subservience and make it pliant.
That is why, less than 48 hours after what the AAP functionaries called a ‘landmark’ Supreme Court judgment, Kejriwal was back, accusing the L-G of not allowing him to transfer officers.
There’s only one way to describe this article- IT’S BULLSHIT !!!!
Shekhar Gupta & Co. are themselves bigtime megalomaniacs just like PB & YY. These jokers are erudite in their fields but their day pass by wondering , how they have no karishma like Mr Kejriwal? When he sees straight into your eyes, you know he is not bluffing because he is very bad actor unlike these jokers. They too are jealous of Modi the chaiwala now PM but Modi is an actor just like them. So, only one is left to hate is Mr Kejriwal.
Nonsense article.
Now I get why you were not invited among other journalists as you mentioned in the article. Because, you are not one. Such shallow writing.
Wierdest comparison ever.
Is the author’s real name Rahul Gandhi?
Bizarre article indeed
Indeed sad. Such a crappy piece is allowed to be published. No factual analysis, No accuracy. Biased and one sided as if someone is fixated in demeaning Kejriwal. People are not fools. We do understand and can clearly see that Modi is just not allowing Kejriwal Govt. to work.
modi never complained on gandhi or nehru, he reminded them of the work he done in 48 months, which was pending for the last 60 years, whereas mr kejriwal. is a habitual liar, complains on anything and everything
Are you serious, author. Are you not aware that all political parties are standing on the sidelines, watching the Union govt violate the constitutional spirit and interfere with the working of Govt of NCT. You are also playing to the gallery. You are trying to benefit from the “new normal” created by Amit Shah-Modi duo, wherein anyone can fart out any fake news or unscientific analysis and get away with it without loosing any professional reputation.
Common people know that if kejriwal was given ACB and power like shiela had, big changes would happen. With limited power aap has delivered. So if services comes to kejriwal,he will put good ias officers at work. Not people licking the foot for position.
LG has damaged Delhi state, by being an obstructionist as sc said.
How can the author be so dumb and compare a good person with modi, who is just a man hungry for power at any cost. Be it selling the nation.
Bjp and LG is afraid that aap will perform and win next elections. They just want to finish of aap. Somehow.
This article was tweeted by Shri. Prashanth Bhushan. I half-expected an analysis that was worthy (even if I disagreed) but what I found was tripe. The author seems to have fixated on the idea of swapping their names, created a headline and then proceeded to make it into an article although it never made sense even to him in a few sentences.
Biased and very poorly written article.There is no comparison between Kejriwal and Modi.The points of comparison are flimsy and lame.The accusations are simply misrepresented facts like the one about Lokpal and Kejriwal having used and discarded Anna Hazare.The print lost my respect.
Kejriwal and Modi will use everyone, everything to retain power, to come back in power. Both are megalomaniacs, autocratic, blatant liars and dramebaaz.
“But more importantly, possibly because it was never his intention to get the Lokpal operational, Kejriwal chose not to seek the Centre’s prior approval before tabling the bill in the assembly.”
-did you even read the SC order and what it said ?
It said , permission and prior approval is not at all necessary to table and pass bills in Delhi Assembly…and that LG is bound to act on aid and advice of Delhi Govt.
Take a minute and let that sink in.
I thought theprint was emerging as one of the few and honest trustable media outlet, but I have been proven wrong by this amateur article. One cannot even compare Mr. Modi and Mr. Kejriwal, as Modi’s popularity is based on 8000 cr PR campaign and the Kejriwal’s on his sheer hard work towards Delhi’s progress.I can count 3 best things done in Delhi out of many which have not been done in any part of India since independence
Electricity (halved)
Water (free upto 20000 litres
Health (Mohalla clinics)
I request our prime minister to do the same thing in his speeches where people are brought in trucks, and 360 cr is spent(According to recent RTI)
They play the game of politics differently yet convincingly enough for people to vote for them..It is a welcome change for democracy.. A reprieve from run off the mill politicians who are known for corruption and incompetence.
WORST ARTICLE GO BACK SCHOOL BRO
I am a common citizen who is trying to figure out whom to vote for during the next election. Shekhar Gupta tweeted this article so I read it. However, this is a bizarre article and not helpful at all. Hopefully the author can explain. The author believes that “it is Modi who has given instructions to the L-G to stall everything that he wants to do” and “Kejriwal (and not Rahul Gandhi) was Modi’s big worry.” Still, goes on to call the AAP protest against LG and Modi as tantrums! AAP believes and the author concurs that the Modi govt is being obstructionist. Are they not allow to even protest? Is it not AAP’s duty to protest. Would you like then to beg? Do you think that will be more effective. The author sets up false equivalence by talking about personality cult and comparing Modi and Kejriwal. Please see the videos of Delhi schools on youtube. No one mentions Kejriwal! Similarly, he accuses Kejriwal of sidelining Hazare, Bhushan, Yadav, Biswas without providing any details. Very poor quality piece. Hope I get some explanation for my efforts.