Modi must rein in Swamy

Narendra Modi’s Alpha-male image of a domineering individual, a la Barabara Cartland’s romantic fiction, has been severely dented by the antics of Subramanian Swamy, a seemingly out-of- control saffron gadfly.

Initially presumed to have been elevated to the ranks of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MPs to needle the Nehru- Gandhis in Parliament, Swamy has veered off the designated course, like an authentic maverick, and is now picking off one target after another – Reserve Bank Governor Raghuram Rajan first and Chief Economic Adviser Arvind Subramanian next.

Swamy has succeeded in discomfiting Rajan sufficiently. There is not an iota of proof in what Swamy has been saying, but that is the way loose cannons operate.

However, the unsubstantiated allegations were sharp enough to get under Rajan’s skin, making him decide not to seek a second term.

But, apart from Finance Minister Arun Jaitley’s disapproval of personal attacks, there was not a squeak from the others. The Prime Minister even told the Wall Street Journal that it wasn’t the media’s business to be interested in the tenures of central bankers.

If anything, the dismissive remark suggested that he was on Swamy’s side, although the fact that Modi does not hold press conferences probably means that he believes that nothing should be of interest to the media anyway.

However, it is when Swamy trained his guns on Arvind Subramanian that Jaitley jumped to the latter’s defence by asserting how valuable the adviser is.
A BJP spokesman also said that the party does not agree with Swamy’s views and that they were ‘completely his personal opinion’.
The next few days will show whether similar disciplinary steps will be taken against Swamy. But, irrespective of whether his exuberance is checked, what the events of the recent past has shown is that neither is the BJP as disciplined as it claims to be, nor is Modi in full control of his party and the saffron brotherhood as is believed.

If this is indeed the case, then it is obvious that Swamy has powerful backers who are not as mindful of the reputation of God’s gift to the nation, which is how Parliamentary Affairs Minister M Venkaiah Naidu describes Modi.

Whatever be the subterranean political manoeuvres, they are bound to harm Modi’s image internally and spook the foreign investors notwithstanding the opening of new doors for them since the move is seen more as a measure to calm the markets after Rajan’s decision to quit than a genuine desire to open up the economy.

The government now has to show that its hands are firmly on the wheel and that it cannot be pushed around by a
busybody.

By:Amulya Ganguli