India's "sidelined" FM Sushma Swaraj at loggerheads with pro-Modi twitterati, blocks a few in "kneejerk" reaction

By Our Representative
Is India's "sidelined" foreign minister Sushma Swaraj at loggerheads with right-wing pro-Narendra Modi trolls, who make no stone unturned in attacking anyone criticizing the Prime Minister on the popular micro blogging site Twitter? It would seem so, if what is being termed as her recent "kneejerk responses" to some of the pro-Modi twitterati is any indication.

Pointing out that she has gone so far as to block some of these trolls, the well-known site altnews.com, known to be keeping a close watch on Twitter trends, says, this has happened ever since "India tightened its visa policy for Pakistani nationals... Many Pakistanis have approached Swaraj on Twitter for help with acquiring medical visa on humanitarian grounds."
"The fact that she has been equanimous and considerate in her approach has earned her the ire of many right-wing twitterati, terming her 'Medical Mata' and 'Visa Mata'. The recent treatment of Kulbhushan Jadav’s family by Pakistan further aggravated matters", an article by Sam Jawed, objecting to the minister's behaviour, says, even as quoting several instances.
Jawed says, "Her assistance to Pakistani citizens ... earned her the ire of her right wing supporters and made her a target of incessant trolling with tweets like, 'Those who promised to bring us ten heads in retaliation for one are distributing visas to our enemy state', 'You criticise or trash Medical Mata @SushmaSwaraj, you will be instantly blocked by her... even though she's a public offficer…'”

The "attackers" on Twitter have called Swaraj's "daily routine of tweeting medical visas" as becoming "embarrassing now", even as insisting that "her responses are usually in cases with good PR potential" having "no accountability", and there is "no good reason for her to be behaving like a consular officer."
One of those who has been blocked by Swaraj (Prasun Maitra@prasunmaitra) has tweeted, "I am proud to be blocked by a minister who seeks votes from secessionists in exchange of compromised foreign policy. She is a stigma on @narendramodi government". He even provides a screenshot of the blocking message from Twitter. And Namrata@_Namrataa tweets, "Achievement unlocked: Sushma ji blocked me thanks to people tagging her in replies perhaps".
A pro-Modi Twitter enthusiast, @namo_satya, complains, "Respected @PMOIndia @narendramodi ji, Ma'am Sushma Swaraj ji blocked me for no reason. If I require any help then to whom shall I contact? She is free to issue medical visa to Pakistanis but why to block Indian citizens?", adding, "This approach is not appreciable from External Affairs Minister of India."
Twitterati have variously said, "No processes, just minister's whims... They should open a medical visa department instead", "Is there any other external affairs minister in world who issues visas at Twitter? Modiji needs to give some real work to Sushma Swaraj", and "After three years in office, why isn’t she able to set up a system that works without the need of her intervention in every case? She appears to be more accessible to Pakistanis than their own government..."
Notes Jawed, "Swaraj runs a very popular Twitter handle with close to 11 million followers. Many people reach out to her via twitter. Lost a passport in a foreign country? Need to travel on an emergency? Need consular access on a holiday? Whatever the issue for Indian citizens abroad, Swaraj was always a click away, resolving problems with a warm, personal touch."
He adds, "Though her personal intervention in individual cases won her much acclaim, she also invited criticism from those who argued that her talent was severely underutilized in the ministry... Ironically many of those who are mocking Swaraj and have been blocked by her are staunch supporters of her own party, some even followed by Modi on Twitter."

Comments

Uma Sheth said…

This is the problem with our country today: do something good and be pulled down for it. Swaraj is the only minister who is really doing some work which puts the country in a good light: helping Pakistanis get medical treatment in our country--what better PR exercise can there be? Besides this, she has helped several Indians with consular problems or those who have been detained in foreign lands for various reasons.

I wish all those motormouths would keep quiet and learn something from her.

December 28, 2017

Missed call drive for VVPAT verification follows online plea to "pressure" poll panel

By Our Representative
Several political activists have begun a new campaign, asking concerned citizens to give a missed call on 9667655855 to “support the demand that 2019 Loksabha elections must be declared only after verification of 50% electronic voting machines (EVMs) with Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT) receipts.” The effort, supported by civil society networks across India, is meant to "further pressure" India's election machinery to ensure that the poll outcome becomes more transparent.

Did Modi own, buy digital camera costing Rs 7 lakh in 1987-88, also used email?

Counterview Desk
In an interview to the news channel News Nation, aired on Saturday last, Prime Minister Narendra Modi declaring that he had approved the air strike despite bad weather because he felt the clouds would hide Indian planes from Pakistani radar is known to have become a laughing stock across India.

When a neo-nationalist "invaded" hijab clad ladies, Bengali looking scholar in Delhi metro

By Aditi Kundu*
Travelling in Delhi metro on a daily basis to commute from Mayur Vihar to Dwarka, I see diverse people everyday. One can hear them talk about different aspects of life, from kitchen pilitics to national politics. On the morning of May 13, I witnessed a strange incident; disturbing and amusing at the same time.

Terror attacks: Difference in public reactions in India, those in Colombo, Christchurch

By Battini Rao*
Recently, on April 20 during Easter Sunday, more than 250 people were killed in a series of coordinated terrorist attacks in churches and hotels in Colombo, Sri Lanka. Local Islamic organisations Thawheed Jamath (NJT) and Jamathei Milathu Ibrahim (JMI) are held responsible for the attack. Islamic State has also claimed responsibility.

Women lost 88 lakh jobs in 2018: Why Modi "failed" to address their disempowerment?

Counterview Desk
Five human rights leaders Anjali Bhardwaj, Shabnam Hashmi, Purnima Gupta, Dipta Bhog, and Amrita Johri of the Women March for Change have posed 56 questions (alluding to Modi’s claim of 56 inches chest) to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP against the backdrop of his interview with a Bollywood star, which was allegedly masqueraded as a “non-political” conversation.

Now, top Gujarat "litterateur" close to Modi says: Godse was patriot, so was Gandhi

By Rajiv Shah
A little over a week after Prime Minister Narendra Modi criticized BJP candidate from Bhopal Pragya Thakur for calling Nathuram Godse a patriot saying he would never forgive her for the remark, a top Sangh Parivar ideologue, known to close to Modi in Gujarat, has supported her, saying her statement should be seen “within a context.” Thakur won from Bhopal by more than 3.5 lakh votes defeating her nearest rival, veteran Congressman and ex-Madhya Pradesh chief minister Digvijay Singh.

World Bank clarifies: Its 26th rank to India not for universal access to power but for ease of doing business

By Our Representative
In a major embarrassment to the Government of India, the World Bank has reportedly clarified that it has not ranked India 26th out of 130 countries for providing power to its population. The top international banker’s clarification comes following Union Power Minister Piyush Goyal’s claim that India has “improved to 26 position from 99” in access to electricity in just one year.

Disproportionately high death sentences against Dalits, Adivasis, Muslims: UN told

Counterview Desk
In their joint submission to the United Nations Human Rights Committee to meet for the listing of adoption of list of issues at its 126th session, July 1-26, 2019, top Dalit rights organizations have taken strong exception to, among other things, "disproportional application of death sentencing by the judiciary of minorities, such as Muslims, Dalits and Adivasis".

India's 80% construction sites "unsafe", deaths 20 times higher than those in Britain

By Rajiv Shah
The Government of India may be seeking to project India’s construction sector as the country’s second-largest employer of the country after agriculture, providing jobs to more than 44 million people, and contributing nearly 9% to the national GDP, yet, ironically, its workforce is more unprotected than any other industrial sector of the country. Data suggest that the possibility of a fatality is five times more likely in the construction industry than in a manufacturing industry, and the risk of a major injury is 2.5 times higher.

India sans Modi preferable, Congress worthier recipient of Indians’ votes: The Economist

By Our Representative
In a strongly-worded and crucial commentary on Prime Minister Narendra Modi as the electoral political battle is on, influential British weekly “The Economist”, has declared that “Indians, who are in the midst of voting in a fresh election, would be better off with a different leader”, even as pointing out that that under Modi, “India’s ruling party poses a threat to democracy.”

Counterview

Search This Blog