The no-confidence motion led to a trust vote may have, predictably, been won by the government of the day. It was the optics of the event that kept the eyeballs glued for hours together for a day. The surprising hug, better known as ‘Pappu ki Jhappi’, the handshake offered by Narendra Modi and then the Rahul wink made the event so theatrical it is still being talked about.
What emerged out of the no-trust exercise was the ultimate projection of Rahul Gandhi as the clear challenger to the Prime Minister’s gaddi. Several netas are known to nurse the ambition and they reside outside New Delhi, in UP, Bengal and elsewhere. The Gandhi scion is, however, the one being celebrated now as ‘The Alternative’.
The TINA (there is no alternative) idea may appeal to the ruling party but the Twitterati are not buying it after four years of the Modi rule. There is no question that the gauntlet was thrown that day in parliament. Tweeple would have it that there are plenty of alternatives and the 2019 polls are by no means a one horse race as the ruling party would like to believe. The depth of feeling about the present day scene is reflected in how the two sides are rating the prospects of the incumbent and the challenger. There is a clear divide on who should be king even as new nicknames are being invented for both. If the temperature is already hot, imagine what 2019 is going to be like.
Tavleen Singh @tavleen_singh
Why don’t you give me a few suggestions for a better bet Richard? So far the choice is: Rahul, Mayawati, Akhilesh and more of the same. Under which of these fine leaders do you think India will do better??
The lynchings have been in mostly BJP states. In Alwar the killers of Pehlu Khan were released on bail. In Dadri a case was tried to be made against the victim's family. If Modi spoke loudly against mob violence it would have huge impact
Rahul Aggarwal @rahulagg1
I don’t know about the high level politics, but at least I know that being Non-Aligned, Human Rights crusader and etc. did not help India against terrorism. It’s better to be feared than to be loved. China has taught us that
Ajit Hegde @ajitrkhegde
Like most of ruling elites Tavleen thinks Mayawati and Akhilesh are not classy enough for her taste and Rahul is anyway son of her arch-nemesis (at least in Tavleen’s mind, if nowhere else) Sonia. She is a second rate or third rate right wing publicist. Nothing more
Tony Joseph @tjoseph0010
None of them run lynch mobs. None of them garland lynch mobs. None of them have a Twitter army issuing rape & death threats. None of them have Photoshop factories producing hate propaganda. None of them have TV channels spreading hatred. They all pass the most basic test
Krishna Kumar Lal@lal997
What about lynching of Kashmiri pandits and Sikhs and all culprits are walking freely, open an eye on Kerala & Bengal and dare to talk about all crimes against humanity
richard holkar @holkarmaharaj
It has been a long time now that it is clear that Modi has no intention of castigating these extremists. As such he is as complicit in their actions as Trump was in the matter of the white supremacists. Stop supporting him and try to find a better bet
Weakest LINK @rachitsharma0
#India existed before #Modi and will fly high post his tenure. INDIA is bigger than any individual. And this hold true for every politician. Instead of chosing a PM, let’s all pick a good MP/MLA as that could bring real change at the local level.
JayEnAar@GorwayGlobal
This is the usual sterile ‘If not Modi, then who’ argument. It has always been trotted out whenever a strongman leader starts to look shaky. But it is always shown up to be what it is — an argument of desperation
aayeff@aayeff1
Behaviour trumps everything else. Disregard for human lives & inability to speak to protect citizens disqualifies a leader. We saw it in 2002. It’s a pattern. There’s great emphasis on self promotion, thru speeches, events, empty slogans. Modi is no good choice. Others are better
S M Jalageri@smjalageri
Modi is no good choice. Others are better. Other person is always better. In Hegde days, DeveGowda looked so innocent & humble
Mr HMP@GhodaDuke
Lineal descendants of monarch are batting for out of form aspiring monarch. What a pity! Both of u has anything other than encashing the ancestral repute?? (I presume you to be the successor of great Malharba)
Vikram Singh @cynicalVS
Clearly living in Bihar and UP under Lalu, Mulayam and Maya were great experiences. They never had any goon armies. They were not kidnaping capitals of the world. And Mulayam was called Daku for
nothing by the people of UP
Rajesh Nagar@iamrajeshnagar
And now not only in Uttar Pradesh but in few more states also, where you, me or for that matter anyone, can be ruthlessly killed at any moment and that too without any reason... should we rejoice this new normal of a disturbed nation’s tag?
Dharmasthapana@jaysusri1
Any day under leader other than Narendra Modi or any safronite India surely will be far far better economically, socially and security-wise
Booby Prize
BJP leader Subramanian Swamy attacked Rahul Gandhi, saying that the Prime Minister must get a medical test after receiving a hug from the Congress president. “If Rahul felt so emotional then he should have shook hands with Prime Minister Narendra Modi instead giving him a hug”, said Subramanian.
Subramanian Swamy
He also went on to say that Rahul Gandhi has several girlfriends and these people (Gandhi family) are not known to be emotional. He also said that this particular act should not be encouraged in future as several leaders have been killed by such proximity in foreign countries.
HT08
