‘Deeply flawed’ spin: Editors Guild slams MEA’s defense of Modi’s press conference dodge

Why doesn’t Prime Minister Narendra Modi hold press conferences?

The question has almost become a recurring theme at Modi’s overseas engagements, and last week we heard the latest iteration of the MEA’s response. 

At a media briefing in Auckland on Friday, during the final leg of Modi’s three-nation tour, a journalist asked Secretary (East) in the Ministry of External Affairs, Rudrendra Tandon, why Modi has still not held a press conference. Tandon smiled and called the question a case of “deja vu” given that Indian diplomats have fielded it before. He then said it would not be proper for a civil servant to comment on the prime minister’s political choices.

But he went on to comment anyway. “Prime Minister Modi is a quintessential Indian politician,” Tandon said. “By and large, Indian politicians favour direct contact with their electorate, and you must remember that the Indian electorate is predominantly rural folk. They want direct contact – they don’t like being spoken down to, and they don’t like being spoken to through intermediaries. Mr Modi has perfected the art of direct contact with his electorate, and he seems to be doing a rather good job of it, since he’s in his third term, and he’s one of the longest serving prime ministers in our country.”

The Editors Guild of India, however, has now called that explanation “deeply flawed”.

In a statement issued earlier today, the Guild said the PM has to routinely answer both his urban and rural people on urgent political and economic issues, especially at a time when the world is mired in an unprecedented energy crisis in the wake of the war in West Asia. “The truth is that he has been reluctant to share his views on this gargantuan crisis with any kind of media,” it said.

The statement also took issue with the idea that direct, one-way messaging can substitute for a press conference. “All over the democratic world, leaders not only do not ignore the media but regularly interact with and face questions from it as an integral part of the participatory process. In every functioning democracy, the media speaks on behalf of the public, seeking accountability from those in public office, and soliciting responses to the urgent and pressing issues faced by the masses,” it said.  

“Scripted, one-way communications, largely through social media channels, are not a substitute for public interaction with independent media,” the statement added. 

The guild then appealed to senior MEA officials not to issue such “glib platitudes, which only serve to have a further chilling effect on free speech and media freedom.”

This is not the first time the question has followed Modi abroad. In May, at a joint appearance in Oslo with Norwegian prime minister Jonas Gahr Støre, journalist Helle Lyng asked Modi directly why he does not take questions from the press. Modi did not respond and walked on. The moment made headlines and prompted debate on social media.

Modi arrived in Auckland last Friday for what he described as a “historic” visit – the first by an Indian prime minister to New Zealand in nearly four decades.

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