Prime Minister Narendra Modi was on the receiving end of trolling on Saturday, 11 May, as people took to social media over his unusual logic in an interview to News Nation, while discussing the Balakot air strikes.
In the interview, when quizzed about what was on his mind when he gave the orders for the air strikes, PM Modi said, “It was raining heavily that night and at around 12 midnight, a thought about the strike crossed my mind”.
“Experts were thinking if we should carry out the airstrikes some other day due to bad weather. But I said, there’s so much cloud cover, it’s raining... there’s a benefit. Maybe we can escape their radar. This was my raw wisdom, I said there could be a benefit. [...] Ultimately I said, there’s cloud cover, please go ahead. ”Prime Minister Narendra Modi to News Nation
This was tweeted from the official BJP and BJP Gujarat handles, but has since been deleted.
Here is a video clip of the interview:
Twitter had a field day with the comment. Some were amused, others were angry with the outrageous comment.
Youtuber Dhruv Rathee listed out the three conclusions he draws from PM Modi’s statement.
National Security is a Joke?
Many Twitter users expressed concern over the statement. Journalist Rifat Jawaid said “Indians should worry that our national security has been in his hands and more crucially he has the nuke button.”
Congress member Salman Anees Soz said it is no laughing matter. “It seems no one clarified for the PM how radars work. If that is the case, then it is a very serious national security issue.”
Journalist Swati Chaturvedi said it is scary because this is India’s PM whose illiteracy is constantly exposed.
‘Lack of Judgment’
Congress spokesperson Shama Mohamed said PM Modi risked the lives of IAF pilots by authorising airstrikes in bad weather because he believes radars can’t detect planes in cloud cover.
Scholar Ashok Swain asked if Modi's pressure on IAF for the Balakot airstrike on a cloudy night reason for its failure to hit its intended target.
‘Balakot strike is no longer about the IAF but about Modi’s lack of judgment & inability of cabinet ministers & his aides to dissuade him,’ said writer Krishan Pratap Singh.
Sarcasm And Memes
Modi’s comment also gave rise to many memes and sarcastic one liners.
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