Published 11:21 IST, January 18th 2020
Big Twist? 'PM Modi's biggest advantage is he's not Rahul Gandhi,' says Ramachandra Guha
During the discussion on the subject 'Patriotism vs Jingoism' at the Kerala Literature Fest, historian Ramachandra Guha was critical of the former Cong chief
Historian Ramchandra Guha on Friday made a big statement saying that Prime Minister Narendra Modi's biggest advantage is that he is not Rahul Gandhi. Guha was extremely critical of the Congress leader at the Kerala Literature Festival in Kozhikode.
Guha's sharp criticism
Speaking at the event, Guha emphasised on the administrative experience that PM Modi has had and the number of years he had spent as a party cadre, as well as the Chief Minister of Gujarat, which he opined has given him an advantage over the member of the Congress dynasty, who has held no ministerial berth till date and has only been a member of Parliament.
"Narendra Modi's great advantage is that he is not Rahul Gandhi. He is self-made. He has run a state for 15 years, he has administrative experience, he is incredibly hard-working and he never takes holidays in Europe. Believe me, I am saying all this in all seriousness."
Guha, who is an author of multiple books on Indian history and is also a Cricket enthusiast, also said that the citizens of Kerala made a mistake by electing him to the Lok Sabha during the recently held Lok Sabha elections. Gandhi contested from Wayand and Amethi, losing in his family bastion's seat, whilst winning in the south.
"Kerala, you have done many wonderful things for India, but one of the disastrous things you did was to elect Rahul Gandhi to the parliament," Guha said.
The Congress leader has been accused of being an absentee leader and has on multiple occasions not been where he perhaps should have been when the opposition needed him, such as during the Maharashtra and Haryana elections where he only dropped in at the last moment, having been abroad for the bulk of campaigning. Under Rahul Gandhi, the Congress won just 52 seats in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls.
Guha also called out the hypocrisy of the 'left' and blamed it for the rise of Hindutva in India. "The hypocrisy of the Indian Left is one of the reasons why Hindutva is so prominent today. The Left is only in power in Kerala, but it has been in power in West Bengal, Tripura in other states. The Left has been influential in universities, intellectuals, artists and filmmakers. The Left is ideologically hypocritic because of the fact that they loved other nations more than India."
Guha also mentioned that the citizens of Kerala made a mistake by electing Gandhi to the Parliament, saying that India does not want a fifth-generation dynast in power. "Why did you (Malayalis) elect Rahul Gandhi to Parliament. I have nothing against Rahul Gandhi personally. He is a decent fellow, very well-mannered. But young India does not want a fifth-generation dynast," he added.
Updated 13:36 IST, January 18th 2020