Modi in Pak Media

What is the buzz in Pakistani media about Narendra Modi, his PM candidature and 2014 general elections?

WrittenBy:Somi Das
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Narendra Modi wearing a white kurta, red tilak and speaking in thick Bihari accent- this is how the BJP prime ministerial candidate is portrayed in a Pakistani comedy show on Geo TV Khabarnaak in its October 5, 2013 episode. In the show moderated by Aftab Iqbal, Modi’s spoof is shown sitting with Pakistani commoners and giving dumb answers to their questions.

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The portrayal was meant to be a parody. But a caricature is supposed to have some resemblance to the character it is modeled on.  Modi doesn’t speak or act like a politician from the Hindi heartland. While this may be an example of satire gone wrong, for the media in Pakistan a nuanced portrayal of Modi is not the most important thing. The thing that bothers them most is what if Narendra Modi really becomes the Prime Minister of India.

Modi’s speeches and political maneuverings are closely watched and analysed by Pakistani media-both print and TV. Pakistani journalists mince no words in stating their apprehensions about Modi. Eminent Pakistani writer and journalist Beena Sarwar, who is associated with the Aman Ki Asha campaign, said in an interview to The Indian Express  that Pakistan sees the rise of Modi “with as much apprehension as you guys (India) see Hafiz Saeed. Probably less, for Hafiz Saeed is not going to be an elected representative anytime soon. About Modi being PM, there is talk of it. But can he actually come and declare war on Pakistan? I don’t think so”.  It is not surprising that Modi in hyperbole is the only way he will be spoken of in Pakistan.

Dawn’s correspondent in Delhi Jawed Naqvi in an article titled ‘Modi as Pakistan’s candidate’ opines how the Pakistani army would love to see Modi in power. He writes:

“The hatred the Modi-loving middle class nurtures is not only towards Muslims. There are strong signs of other filters of prejudice. Dalits and tribes people were commandeered as the sword arm of Hindutva in the Gujarat experiment against Muslims in 2002………… A combination of civilian and military rulers helped to convert Pakistan into a religious state. Fire-breathing Modi, admired by the military, is the best candidate to blow India’s floundering Nehruvian tryst to rubble. And the West should be there to applaud, as it once did for Pakistan.”

Another popular Pakistani columnist Basharat Hussain Qizilbash in an article in Pakistan Today opines on why Modi’s increasing prominence in India’s central politics is “ominous for Pakistan and Muslims in India”.

He writes:

Modi has worked as a ‘pracharak’ (organiser) of this Sangh Parivar, precisely of the RSS. This is his track record in Gujarat; one wonders how differently will he rule the whole of India? His party has a tendency to engineer communal violence to win the Hindu votes and an analysis of riots throughout India indicates a trend that they “occur significantly more often in the six months before or after elections.” It will be interesting to see how this correlation between riots and the BJP works in the upcoming elections. As his party’s ‘Hindutva’ ideology brands the Muslims as ‘violent’, ‘criminal’ and a ‘threat’ to Hindus; not only the Indian Muslims but the Pakistanis as well will anxiously watch how the election drama unfolds the fate of Narendra Modi.”

Indian writers and columnists too contribute to the commentary on Modi in the Pakistani press and they don’t hold back either. Known Modi critics like Ajaz Ashraf, A G NoreenAakar Patel articulate their thoughts on Modi regularly in Pakistani media. Talking about the apprehensions in Muslim countries about Modi, Columnists Ajaz Ashraf writes in Daily Times:

“Now imagine Modi as India’s prime minister and his need, inherent in democratic politics, to muster sufficient numbers to remain ensconced in power. From talking about the pride of Gujaratis, he will harp on the pride of Indians. His emotive style of politics will see him fan insecurities countrywide, demanding he create enemies capable of terrorising the entire nation. Such enemies will be so much simpler to find outside the country, in other nations, particularly those comprising South Asia. A trade dispute between India and another country could be blown out of proportion, a concession granted to another nation reversed suddenly, and a border skirmish portrayed as the prelude to an inevitable conflict. It has been Modi’s trait to feed on the weak to become strong personally. Ultimately, Mr Strong is Mr Bully.”

Another very popular Indian voice in Pakistan, commentator on political and diplomatic affairs Saeed Naqvi has written a series of articles on Narendra Modi published in the Friday Times, a weekly paper. Analysing the reasons for Modi’s elevation in BJP he writes,

“Another reason why Modi’s support team have been able to impose a fait accompli on the BJP is because of an acute fear that Modi and his Sancho Panza will, sooner or later, trip up in the course of investigations under way in Gujarat. Modi’s fall will then be the BJP’s fall too. But if Modi is allowed to fly high on a platform of Hindu nationalism, his being grounded will be blamed on intrigue by the forces of “pseudo secularism”. This pits Modi as an embodiment of an idea shaded in dark saffron, projected in Presidential style, against the secular formations, pale and wan, poised precariously on a rickety Parliamentary platform.”

Commentary on Modi is not just confined to print. Discussing Modi is as big a draw on Pakistani television as it is on Indian news channels. Demonstrating the Modi obsession, on a day when an unclaimed terror attack on Pakistani civilians killed 43 and injured over 100 people, what was airing live on several Pakistani channels was Modi’s speech reacting to the ‘dehati aurat’ controversy.

Leading Pakistani news channel ARY News decided to hold a full show on Narendra Modi’s speech on September 15, 2013. It was Modi’s first speech after being declared the BJP PM candidate.  The half an hour show discusses not only Modi’s speech advising Pakistan to “fight poverty rather than India” but also assesses Modi’s popularity in detail in every Indian state. The anchor Aamir Ghauri during the course of the show explained why Narendra Modi is so important a topic for Pakistani media. The main line of his questioning revolved around the possible fallouts of Narendra Modi’s harsh comments against Pakistan and the backlash it might trigger among Pakistani hardliners “who are not in power but have an impact on those ruling, who have street power”.

On the same show, Orya Maqbool Jan who is a regular face on panel discussions and a respected columnist had the following point to make on how religious fundamentalism rules in India.

“India is the only country in the world where their fundos (fundamental elements) Bajrang Dal and Vishwa Hindu Parishad support a political party. That fundo party wins and rules for 12 years. Fundos don’t win in Pakistan. Fundos can blackmail in Pakistan but can’t win. What is BJP? BJP is the representative of their fundos. Vajpayee was the representative of their fundos.”  If he is considered a “serious analyst” in Pakistan media, Indian media critics have a lot less to complain about.

The barrage of misrepresentation of facts doesn’t end there. The anchor of the show goes on to make a bizarre statement while analysing Congress votebank saying “90 per cent of Indian population is Dalit”! The same anchor also likens speeches of Modi to those of Hafiz Saeed, the chief of Jamaat-Ud-Dawah, a banned terrorist organisation in India and many other countries. Displaying further knowledge of Indian politics the anchor says that as opposed to Narendra Modi, Rahul Gandhi has the image of an ‘internationalist’ and has hired a Harvard educated team to make him a Twitter and social networking hero. We are not sure if he meant it as a compliment or a barb.

The high decibel discussions and war mongering on Indo-Pak relations is not an uncommon sight on Indian news channels. Several news channels here in fact transform themselves into war zones on the issues of infiltrations, terrorism and Kashmir. For the Pakistani media these aspects seem to have taken a backseat, their eyes are glued to Indian politics and Modi’s campaign trail in the run up to the 2014 general elections. Indian media is not alone in its fascination for NaMo.

Image Source: Screen grab from ZemTV.com video. 

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