Hafta 224: Priyanka Sharma, the Khan Market Gang, Mani Shankar Aiyar and more

In this week’s episode, host Abhinandan Sekhri is joined by Madhu Trehan, Manisha Pande, and investigative journalist Josy Joseph.

The podcast kicks off with Joseph talking about the ₹1,000-crore civil defamation suit that Naresh Goyal of Jet Airways filed against him after the release of his book, A Feast of Vultures: The Hidden Business of Democracy in India. The book, he says, is a product of 15 years of investigation into government records available in the public domain. In response to Abhinandan’s question about what he thought of the coverage of the Jet Airways crisis, he says, “I think the Jet Airways collapse and Naresh Goyal to me in many ways capture the crisis of Indian democracy…the crisis that we see when you have the Prime Minister of the country on a daily basis assaulting the basic constitutional commitment to scientific temperament.” He also believes that our country is not an imperfect democracy, rather a “democracy in crisis”.

The panel also discusses Narendra Modi’s interview with The Indian Express. Manisha says, “[It is] one of his best interviews that I have read…you really get a sense of this guy and he has so much disdain for the media, every answer is a potshot at the media…in that one interview you really get an insight into how much he hates the media.” Madhu also speaks of Modi’s “shenpa” and why he needs to get over it”.

The panel also talks about the centrality of Mani Shankar Aiyar in the political discourse despite his negligible impact on Indian politics. They also deconstruct the implications of Priyanka Sharma’s arrest on free speech. Joseph says the lack of codification of law has to be tackled urgently to prevent a breakdown of institutions. Manisha says, “At least [journalists] should have a standard understanding of what constitutes free speech and we should push back every time a case like this comes.”

They also talk about a potential rethinking of the  BJP’s extremist politics in light of their response to Pragya Singh Thakur’s recent comment on Nathuram Godse.

For this and more, tune in!

A review of NL Hafta by Pranay, Jaykumar & others

References:
What really killed the Jet Airways?
Mani Shankar Aiyar ko gussa kyun aya?
Prime Minister Narendra Modi Interview to Indian Express: ‘Khan Market gang hasn’t created my image, 45 years of tapasya has… you cannot dismantle it’
Indian Constitutional Law and Philosophy
Modi Cut India’s Red Tape. Now He Hopes to Win Votes for His Work.
पेड या प्रोपगैंडा : अमर उजाला का पीपीआरसी प्रेम
Elections with NL

Recommendations:

Madhu
Kushner, Inc.: Greed. Ambition. Corruption. the Extraordinary Story of Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump

Manisha
A multi-million insurance fraud that preyed on disease, poverty, desperation
Modi and the Media: Love and loathing at a mega rally

Abhinandan
Godse, raised as a girl, saw Gandhi as an ‘effeminate’ Father who didn’t protect Mother India
The Supreme Court and Memes
The World’s Identity Crisis

Produced Kartik Nijhawan, edited by Umrav Singh and recorded by Rishabh.

You can also listen to all our podcasts on the Newslaundry App and get updates about all our podcasts via Twitter and Facebook.

iOS: http://apple.co/2iZhEq1