On June 26, Congress’ chairperson of Social Media and Digital Platforms, Supriya Shrinate, lashed out at Indian Union Ministers for calling out former President Barak Obama for his outrageous comment on India while Prime Minister Narendra Modi was on his official state visit to the US.
In a visibly angry tweet, Shrinate questioned if the Ministers of the Modi government “realised the repercussions” of the diatribe against “President Obama”. Shrinate was so agitated that at the beginning of the tweet, she forgot Obama is a former President and not the current one.
Asking out of curiosity – do Ministers in the Modi govt realise the repercussions of their diatribe against President Obama?
— Supriya Shrinate (@SupriyaShrinate) June 26, 2023
These silly ‘more loyal than the king’ – dangerous games don’t work for the global world order and are a death knell for diplomatic ties.
Unlike you,…
Moving ahead, she called the ministers “silly” for calling out Obama and said the “dangerous games” that they were playing would not work for the global world order and it would become “a death knell for diplomatic ties”. It is unclear what administrative post Shrinate thinks Obama holds that may lead to the end of diplomatic ties between the US and India.
She further claimed that, unlike PM Modi, countries like the US and their leaders don’t essentially take the insult of their former heads of state lying down. It seems Shrinate forgot Obama was President of the country that has initiated an action against another former President, Donald Trump, that may lead to up to 400 years in prison.
Shrinate further warned PM Modi of the “consequences” of what Union Ministers said against former President Obama. She said, “Mr Modi, your ministers are headed down a dangerous path – this will have consequences. Rein in these motormouths and be warned.”
Shrinate was not the only one to target Union Ministers and PM over an issue related to PM Modi’s visit to the US. Congress supporter Tehseen Poonawalla shared a video of the White House Press Secretary where he condemned so-called attacks on Wall Street Journal’s reporter Sabrina Siddiqui who asked PM Modi a propaganda-filled question during the joint press meeting.
The trolling of a journalist by supporters of our Hon'ble PM & BJP has brought condemnation from the White House Press Secretary. This trolling of #SabrinaSiddiqui was uncalled for & gives our India a bad name. Such intimidation will undo all the good work India does . pic.twitter.com/piwtL4r2hv
— Tehseen Poonawalla Official 🇮🇳 (@tehseenp) June 27, 2023
He wrote, “The trolling of a journalist by supporters of our Hon’ble PM & BJP has brought condemnation from the White House Press Secretary. This trolling of #SabrinaSiddiqui was uncalled for & gives our India a bad name. Such intimidation will undo all the good work India does.”
In both cases, Congress has expressed its desire to curb the freedom of expression of its own citizens to avoid upsetting the US. Notably, Congress has been pandering to US meddling in the internal affairs of India as it is precisely what they want. During his recent visit to the US, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi openly called for US intervention in India’s affairs.
In March 2023, Rahul Gandhi urged the US and Europe to intervene to “restore” democracy in India. Rahul claimed that Europe and the US are not doing enough to restore democracy in India as they are getting trade and money from the country.
In April 2021, Rahul Gandhi, during an online interaction with Ambassador Nicholas Burns of the Harvard Kennedy School, asked for American interference in India. “I don’t hear anything from the US establishment about what is happening in India. If you say, partnership in democracy is, I mean, what’s your view on what is happening here?” Rahul Gandhi said. He also asserted that America must somehow defend the ‘idea of freedom’.
Notably, during his US visit, Rahul Gandhi did not heed the threats people and organisations he met posed to India. Many Islamist organisations and anti-India organisations were part of events that the Indian Overseas Congress hosted for Gandhi in the US. Such organisations include IAMC, HfHR, and more. OpIndia’s detailed report on how Congress allied with Islamists and rabid Leftists can be checked here.
Obama’s remarks on India
Barack Obama, who has a notorious record as a potential war criminal, suggested that the Biden administration must tell the Indian Prime Minister about protecting the ‘Muslim minority in a majority Hindu India.’ He also hinted at another ‘partition’ of India, under the Modi government, did not mend its ways.
He said, “If President (Joe Biden) meets with Prime Minister (Narendra) Modi, the protection of Muslim minority in a majority Hindu India is something worth mentioning.”
Obama also claimed, “If I had a conversation with Prime Minister Modi, then part of the conversation would be that if you do not protect the rights of minorities, then there is a strong possibility that India at some point starts pulling apart…That would be contrary to the interests of India.”
Nirmala Sitharama’s rebuttal to Obama
Finance Minister of India Nirmala Sitharaman, in a fierce retort, reminded the former US President that 6 Muslim nations were bombed by the US under his rule.
“It was surprising that when the PM was visiting the US and telling people about India, a former US President (Barack Obama) was making a statement on Indian Muslims…I am speaking cautiously; we want a good friendship with the US, but they comment on India’s religious tolerance. Perhaps 6 Muslim-dominated countries were bombed due to him (Obama)…More than 26,000 bombs were dropped,” she said.
OpIndia’s detailed report on the human rights record of Barack Obama can be checked here.
