Punjab Congress chief Navjot Singh Sidhu has compared Modi’s experience with that of the farmers who camped on the outskirts of Delhi for over a year braving the extremes of the national capital’s climate as well as comparable behaviour by the administration and security forces. “I want to ask Pradhan Mantri Sahab, our farmer brothers camped at the Delhi borders for over one year… tell me, they stayed there for one and half-year. Your media did not say anything,” Sidhu was quoted as saying at a rally.The official response to the security lapse raises two fundamental issues. One, is the PM’s security so vulnerable that it cannot deal with a 10 or 20-minute hold-up? Of course, the present case was avoidable by all means and a lapse may indeed have happened, which a probe will establish. But there could always be unexpected developments, including those arising from natural causes, that can create such hold-ups at any time and the security detail is expected to be equipped to deal with any such eventualities.The second question is whether an Indian Prime Minister is scared to be among his own people, in which case there is a deeper malady in the society.Modi’s reported exasperation also does not sync with his own approach towards the ‘feudal customs’ and ‘red beacon culture’. Modi had clearly denounced the ‘red beacon culture’ which he was keen to replace with greater emphasis on governance. But there has been a serious mismatch between words and deeds, with a disturbing rate of consistency.Modi’s cabinet had decided in 2017 to remove the red beacons from all official vehicles, including those on the PM’s and it was widely hailed as the beginning of a new era. “This government is a government of common masses and has decided to abolish VIP culture of beacon lights and sirens,” Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari had said after the decision.But the government of the common masses seems to be a long way off still when a prime minister would feel safe among his people.
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