After avoiding press conferences for years, Prime Minister Narendra Modi suddenly discovered his love for criticism during a chat with an American podcaster.
In a three-hour conversation with American scientist and podcaster Lex Fridman, Modi underlined his similarities with US president Donald Trump, stressed the significance of dialogue over discord in India-China ties, lashed out at Pakistan, and called for peace in Ukraine. He also spoke about the RSS, the success of the BJP, the idea of India, and the 2002 Gujarat riots.
In the episode uploaded on Sunday, he also spoke about how criticism is essential for democracy. Apparently, criticism, as per Modi’s definition, requires “thorough study” and “in-depth research” – unlike, say, demonetisation, which was clearly implemented after decades of careful economic analysis.
This embrace of criticism comes from a government that has been accused of weaponising sedition laws, targeting activists, artistes and opposition politicians, and presiding over one of the steepest declines in press freedom rankings in India’s democratic history.
Meanwhile, Congress general secretary (communications) Jairam Ramesh hit out at the prime minister while accusing him of having gone after critics “with a vengeance”. “He who is afraid of facing the media in a press conference has found comfort in a foreign podcaster anchored in the rightwing ecosystem. And he has the gall to say that ‘criticism is the soul of democracy’ when he has systematically gutted every institution that is to hold his government accountable and gone after critics with a vengeance that no one in recent history has matched!” Ramesh wrote on X.
What Modi said
“If democracy truly runs in your veins, you must embrace it. In our scriptures, it’s said: ‘Always keep your critics close.’ Critics should be your nearest companions because through genuine criticism, you can improve quickly and work democratically with better insights,” Modi said on the podcast.
“But my real complaint is that nowadays, what we see isn't real criticism. Genuine criticism requires thorough study, in-depth research, and careful analysis. It demands finding the truth from falsehoods. Today, people look for shortcuts, avoid proper research, and skip deep analysis,” he said.
The prime minister also acknowledged that the media often plays with words for attention-grabbing headlines, saying he doesn’t mind it as long as there’s no deliberate agenda. “If someone’s attracted by catchy headlines or plays with words, I honestly don't mind that much. But when there’s a deliberate agenda behind the actions, and the truth is deliberately ignored, that can cause damage that lasts for decades.”
“There's a big difference between allegations and criticism. The references you're giving, they are allegations, not criticism. For a strong democracy, genuine criticism is necessary. Allegations benefit no one; they just cause unnecessary conflicts,” he noted.
While an ecosystem tries to snuff out criticism, you can keep it alive. We promise to make it genuine. Only if you support us.
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