‘Creating Issue Out of Non-Issues’: Former Bureaucrats Defend PM in Open Letter

The 'Concerned Citizens' group advised the former civil servants against "orchestrating a false narrative of colourable use of state power".

(Photo: Video Grab/ Narendra Modi Twitter)

A group of former judges and retired bureaucrats have questioned the 108 former bureaucrats for their silence on the post-poll violence in West Bengal and communal tension during the recent Ram Navami and Hanuman Jayanti processions in the country.

In an open letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, 197 intellectuals, including eight former judges, 97 former bureaucrats and 92 former army officers issued a rejoinder to the other ex-bureaucrats' group, expressing concern about "politics of hate.”

Accusing the others of trying to sway public opinion in vain and indulging in "virtue signalling,” the letter read: “We, as concerned citizens, do not support the open letter written to the Prime Minister by a self-styled Constitutional Conduct Group (CCG) In which the Prime Minister was called upon to end the politics of hate.”

Calling itself 'Concerned Citizens', the group said it does not believe the open letter to PM Modi by the CCG had "sincere motivations".

They accused the group of having "double standards", creating an issue out of "non-issues", and having a "distorted thinking". The group alleged that the CCG's attempt to "resort to bloated vocabulary to grab international attention, motivated tirades against the democratically elected governments" was a "malaise of our society".

They also claimed that the instances of major communal violence have "palpably" decreased under the BJP government, which has been appreciated by the public.

‘Witnessing a Frenzy of Hate-Filled Destruction in the Country:’ Open Letter to PM Modi

A group of 108 former bureaucrats on Tuesday had submitted a three-page letter to PM Modi expressing concern over “escalation of violence against the minority communities, particularly Muslims” across several “BJP-ruled states.

In an open letter, they said, "we are witnessing a frenzy of hate-filled destruction in the country where at the sacrificial altar are not just Muslims and members of the other minority communities but the Constitution itself".

In the counter-letter, the 'Concerned Citizens' group advised the former civil servants against "orchestrating a false narrative of colourable use of state power".

It alleged that the other group's real intention is to foster a counter-narrative against the "premeditated attacks on peaceful processions during Hindu festivals, be it in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat or New Delhi".