Prime Minister Modi’s address in the motion of thanks to the President’s address on Tuesday was marked by a show of vehemence against the principal Opposition, the Congress party. The speech dwelt less on the achievements of the nearly three-years of his present term of governance or of the development aspirations or push thereof. A PM’s speech in Parliament is meant to be a virtual address to the nation. It is a report card presented by the Government of the day to the nation, listing it’s achievements and aspirations. Mr Modi did not rise to the occasion.
In sum, the PM’s speech was a reply, point-by-point, to what Congress leader Rahul Gandhi stated in Parliament at the start of the current round of discussions. While Rahul had said Modi acted like a “King”, Modi’s reply was predictable – that the Congress foisted dynasty politics on the nation, which was “the biggest danger the nation is facing today.” When Modi campaigned for power in 2014, he had stated the same – that he sought to end dynastic politics. In the nearly eight years, of the NDA rule, the scenario of dynastic politics has grown manifold. State after state is now under its grip and Modi as elected leader of the nation could do nothing about it. Rather, dynastic politics grew directly under his watch. The PM also refuted Rahul Gandhi’s allegation that he and the BJP are dividing the nation and undercutting the importance of states. “Rashtra is not an arrangement of rule or government, it is a living soul for us.” Unity means much more. His government must do more to forge unity between regions, religions, communities and races. Electoral politics is increasingly turning into vicious communal and sectarian fights as the central authority is failing to inspire the masses through assertive action and visionary steps for economic growth.
Among the few positives that the PM listed about his governance was the one on tackling the Covid situation, in which too he targeted the Congress for non-cooperation in handling the epic crisis. He says the government checked the pandemic’s spread to rural India and as a result farmers raised the agricultural production during this worst phase of a national health crisis. “When other nations starved, India raised its food production.” The Modi Government can claim that it had positive achievements only if it is in denial about the tragedy that befell lakhs of migrant workers that died on their journey home. In the second wave many died due to non-availability of hospital beds and oxygen. The PM’s claims that his government helped in the growth of the MSME sector must be taken with a pinch of salt. In fine, the PM’s speech was vacuous.
