Ex-Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, who when in power was repeatedly advised by the BJP-led opposition that silence on critical matters is not a virtue, has shared it with Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Modi, criticised for his long silence over the Kathua and Unnao rape cases that triggered massive protests in the country, was asked by his predecessor Singh to 'Follow his own advice' and 'speak more often'.
In an interview with Indian Express, Singh said he was glad that Modi finally broke his silence.
“But I think the Prime Minister should follow his own advice to me and he should speak more often. Through press (reports) I know that he used to criticize me for not speaking up. I feel that the advice that he used to give me, he should follow it himself,” Indian Express quoted Singh as saying.
PM Modi while addressing an event in Delhi commemorating the birth anniversary of B R Ambedkar last week, had promised that the “daughters of India” will get justice and the guilty won’t be spared.
His comment came weeks after massive protests erupted in several parts of the country and international press slammed his silence over the two rape cases that came to light earlier this month.
“Prime Minister Narendra Modi of India tweets frequently and considers himself a talented orator. Yet he loses his voice when it comes to speaking out about the dangers faced by women and minorities who are frequent targets of the nationalist and communal forces that are part of the base of his Bharatiya Janata Party,” wrote New York Times in its editorial.
The body of an 8-year-old- girl was found in Rasana forest on January 17, a week after she went missing while gazing horses in the forest in Jammu and Kashmir's Kathua.
A charge sheet which was submitted to the court earlier this month revealed some chilling information about her death. The minor was sedated several times, raped several times and was sexually assaulted once again before she was strangulated to death. The charge sheet also added that the accused gave the girl sedatives to make her unconscious while holding her in captivity at a Hindu Prayer hall.
PM Modi's was further brutalized for his continued silence over another rape case from Unnao in which the accused is a BJP MLA. The case worsened when the victim's father died in the police custody from the assault injuries allegedly inflicted by the brother of the MLA and his aides.
"Modi’s failure to speak up earlier had allowed people to think that they could get away without stern action being taken against them. I do feel that those in authority must speak up in time (so as) to give a lead to their followers,” Singh told the newspaper.
Singh further added that after the Delhi gangrape, 2012, where a medical student was brutally gang-raped and murdered came to light, his government and Congress party had amended several rape laws to protect the women of the country.
Talking about how the recent rape cases were given communal colours, Singh said, "The fact that an attempt was made by the BJP to give the incident a communal colour, and that the two (former) ministers (in the J&K) government were also party to fanning communal tensions are also disgraceful."
The former PM also criticised many of the BJP’s state governments “for turning a blind eye” to law and order issues, especially around women’s safety, the lynching of Muslims as well as the baiting of Dalits. "Women safety, lynching of the Muslims and baiting of the Dalits---these three issues were bound to snowball in this last year before general elections in 2019," he said.
“People are misusing the authority of government. They think they can get away with it…law and order is the responsibility of state governments. The BJP government at the Centre could send instructions to its state governments to ensure that law and order is properly enforced, and minorities and Dalits and women are treated properly,” he said.
