New Delhi: In an unexpected move, Prime Minister Narendra Modi Friday addressed his first ever press conference since assuming office five years ago, expressing confidence of returning to power with a full majority and thanking people for supporting him.
But what came as a bit of an anti-climax was the prime minister’s refusal to answer any questions at all, even as he “appreciated” the media.
Modi stuck to talking about “safe” issues in a reminder of his monologues during his radio programme ‘Mann ki Baat’. He didn’t address any controversial or uncomfortable matter, including the latest furore created by Sadhvi Pragya Thakur’s statement on Nathuram Godse being a “patriot”.
All questions were answered by Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) president Amit Shah, who spoke before the PM and gave details of his party’s exhaustive campaign and calibrated strategy for this election.
Modi — who reached the BJP headquarters straight from the airport after he returned from Khargone in Madhya Pradesh where he addressed his last rally of this election season — held the press conference just as Congress president Rahul Gandhi was addressing one himself.
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What he said
During the press meet, both Modi and Shah, most strikingly, made it a point to express complete confidence in returning to power, managing a full majority on their own.
“It has not happened often in our country that a government with a full majority returns once again with a majority. The new government will take up its responsibility as soon as possible,” said Modi.
“We will start to work on the promises made in our manifesto once we come to power again.”
The prime minister added that his government’s “specialty” has been “last-mile delivery”, which had brought in a “new culture of governance in India”.
Attempting a more statesman-like approach after a bitter, near-vicious poll campaign across party lines, the PM said he wanted to thank the people for supporting his government.
“When I started out on this election campaign, I told the people I had come to thank them for their blessings through the ups and downs. The country has always been with me. So in a way, the campaign was a way of thanking people. Even today, I am here to thank you and thank the people through you,” said Modi.
Praising India’s democratic structure, the PM said it was “vibrant”.
“I believe we can say some things proudly. Our democracy is vibrant and full of goodness. We are the biggest democracy in the world, but to showcase our capability is a responsibility we all share,” he said.
Modi highlighted how “Navratri, Ram Navami, Easter, Ramzan, IPL, board exams as well as elections” could all happen simultaneously and smoothly in the Indian democracy.
Talking about his frenzied campaign, the PM said it went off smoothly. “We planned our campaign very meticulously. None of my programmes have been cancelled. Even the weather has favoured me.”
The PM, prone to long-drawn speeches, kept this interaction short, leaving it to Shah to field questions and lay down details.
“The party president is everything for us,” he said, when asked to answer a question.
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Shah’s responses
The party president, meanwhile, used the dais to clarify that Pragya Thakur’s Godse remark Thursday were not in sync with the party. However, Shah also defended her candidature despite Thakur being an accused in the 2008 Malegaon blasts case.
“The case against Sadhvi is false. Levelling allegations against someone does not make that person an accused. Who is responsible for vote bank politics? It is the Congress,” he said.
“A show-cause notice has been sent to her and response has been sought. The party’s disciplinary committee will initiate actions as per the party’s constitution,” added the BJP chief.
Shah also claimed the BJP would get 300 seats on its own, saying the NDA would form the government and any other party that wanted to work along was welcome.
Maintaining the high-pitched attack against West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, Shah said several BJP workers have been killed in the state, claiming it was the Trinamool Congress engineering the violence.
The BJP president also went to great lengths to give details about the campaign, particularly the PM’s, laying out his number of rallies, the distance travelled and even the weather conditions he encountered.
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Congress may have not fulfilled everything the nation desired but bjp has not fulfilled even a single manifestos of 2014. Instead the 2 crore job of indian youth got hit in negative – 7% from 2014 to 2019..i believe the new philosophy of Rahul Will make a better india from the downfall of clutch that bjp has left upon……. Dnt judge the past with present if you do you will never progress and our nation too. Give a chance to this young dazing, powerhouse leader (Rahul) to take the nation a step ahead and hit head to head with international level and put india at the top of the rest of the countries
The print is biased
A chicken heart Prime Minister running and hiding away from the Press for five years. Telling falsehood after falsehood to it devotees. Ignorant of scientific
facts still lecturing to eminent people about his shallow knowledge. Save my country from him.
There won’t be a 2nd term! Unless they have successfully pulled off the EVM scam. And then building bridges with media won’t be required, as there won’t be any media. Ofcourse no Union of India as well.
Oh and just 5000 crores for Prasar Bharti? Isn’t that pocket change in comparison to the Lakhs of Crores given away to Indian scamsters “settled ” abroad by these scamsters in the parliament?
If there is a second term, building bridges with the media should be a priority. A relationship resting on mutual respect and one that acknowledges the role it is expected to play in any healthy democracy. 2. Prasar Bharati runs through almost five thousand crores a year. Na toh koi Doordarshan dekhta hai, na koi AIR sunta hai. At least not I since college. Shut it down, build one good airport each year.
The Leader and his consigliere have turned a political party into brand management organization for the Modi brand. A brand needs to be carefully protected for it to sustain, especially if it’s based on a falsehood.
Hence any real media or public interaction is not desirable for brand Modi, as the risk of being exposed is too high as in few cases like his Dosti Bani Rahe interview with Karan Thapar which he left midway, the sordid episode in Singapore when in an interactive session with students his translator ended up reading the complete answer in English while the Leader had actually stopped midway, Puducherry Vanakkam episode when he couldn’t give a cogent answer to his own party worker, or the most recent one where his supposedly recently penned poem was there neatly printed along with the question number on the paper sheet in his hand. The Leader can only take questions like on Fakeeri, or ways of eating Mangoes. Rest is only his Mann Ki Baat.
How weak this man from within…
Why leaders are avoiding press ? Press before blaming leaders they must introspect to themselves.