While the Left-leaners and Congress party members always point fingers at the BJP and Prime Minister Narendra Modi that they stymie freedom of speech and expression, here are three instances in which these ‘champions’ of freedoms of all kinds were coaxed into issuing clarifications for their open and bold statements against Rahul Gandhi, Islamic extremism and Congress’s association with the underworld
Bengaluru: Indian Liberals have never shied away from any endeavour to harp on an opportunity to defame and deracinate Prime Minister Narendra Modi in showing him to be a dictator and Fascist.
If you ferret the internet, you would be flooded with stories. Left liberals would be shouting their lungs out to expose how Modi would be snatching various “freedoms”.
But if you were to look on the contrary, these Left liberals have themselves become victims of their own ideologies.
To expose their fallacy and hypocrisy, we have compiled a small list of how these “champions” of free speech have been made to horribly eat back their words.
1. Ramchandra Guha, historian
At the Kerala Literature Festival, Guha was quoted as saying India doesn’t need a fifth-grade dynast in the form of Rahul Gandhi. He also eulogised PM Narendra Modi as self-made and a man who had fifteen years of experience in administration. And as his mea culpa went viral, Guha went out of his way to give a clarification.
He said, “My statement has been distorted. It was a casual joke made in Kerala."
Guha also accused media organisations of misreporting his statement.
2. Shashi Tharoor, Congress leader
Shashi Tharoor is always in the vanguard of cherry-picking statements and facts that besmirch Hinduism, rather in his words, Hindutva.
When the CAA protests were going on, strangely and even surprisingly, Shashi Tharoor pointed out that Islamic fundamentalism was as bad as Hindutva.
Our fight against Hindutva extremism should give no comfort to Islamist extremism either. We who’re raising our voice in the are fighting to defend an . We will not allow pluralism&diversity to be supplanted by any kind of religious fundamentalism. https://t.co/C9GVtB9gIa
— Shashi Tharoor (@ShashiTharoor)
But that was enough to raise the hackles of others on the social media website. He was forced to give a clarification.
For those who have chosen to misunderstand this tweet, do read it with my next one: https://t.co/N5rggnUwih
— Shashi Tharoor (@ShashiTharoor)
Shashi Tharoor’s attempt to mollify Islamists did not end here. He even went a step ahead and tried comparing Hinduism, Hindutva, Christianity and Islam.
An interesting, though incomplete, comparative table doing the rounds. pic.twitter.com/WiDxKx0JZU
— Shashi Tharoor (@ShashiTharoor)
But here too he received backlash. Many took him on.
Ultimately, he also experienced real intolerance on the campus of Jamia Millia as slogans were shouted against him for his observations.
3. Sanjay Raut, NCP leader
It might be recalled that Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut had made a statement that put the Congress in a spot of bother.
"They (underworld) used to decide who will be Mumbai's police commissioner and who will sit in Mantralaya (state secretariat). When (underworld don) Haji Mastan came to Mantralaya, the entire secretariat would come down to see him. Indira Gandhi used to meet Karim Lala in Pydhonie (in south Mumbai)," he had said.
A day later, a picture emerged in which Indira Gandhi was seen with underworld don Karim Lala, embarrassing the Congress further.
At this crucial juncture, he was forced to retract his statement.
"Our friends in Congress need not be offended by this. I have defended Indira Gandhi many times when she was attacked while Congress kept mute. If someone thinks that my statement would dent the stature of Indira Ji or hurt the sentiment of someone, then I retract my statement,” he added.
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