Mann & Modi interaction
Recorded during the NITI Aayog meeting held in New Delhi Saturday, a video of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s informal interaction with chief ministers of opposition-ruled states is drawing attention on social media. In it, Modi, in a seemingly jovial mood, could be seen chatting with Jharkhand CM Hemant Soren, Tamil Nadu CM M.K. Stalin, Telangana CM Revanth Reddy, and Punjab CM Bhagwant Mann, among others.
Mann appeared particularly warm as he greeted Modi, bowing before him—a moment that caught the eye of many from the word go.
Hours later, senior officials from Punjab’s information and publicity department requested media houses to use only the pictures of Mann at the event that had been officially released by the department. Needless to say, none of those photos showed Mann making that deferential gesture.
The NITI Aayog governing council meeting marks a rare occasion when the Prime Minister and all chief ministers are under the same roof at the same time.
Akhilesh’s deferred foreign trip
Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav, currently on a foreign trip, is making use of micro-blogging platform X to remain steadfast in the virtual duel with Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders, constantly targeting Uttar Pradesh CM Yogi Adityanath, and his deputies Keshav Maurya and Brajesh Pathak.
Sources in the Samajwadi Party say Akhilesh’s trip was initially planned for the second week of May, but he postponed the trip on account of Operation Sindoor—Indian armed forces’ military action against terror camps in Pakistan and PoK—to avoid giving the ruling BJP an opportunity to attack him for being overseas at such a critical time for the country.
This is Akhilesh’s second foreign trip this year.
The first, in March, was overshadowed by the passing of close aide and socialist writer Manoj Yadav, also known as Frank Huzur. Akhilesh was on the receiving end of criticism for not being at the side of the family at the time of Huzur’s passing. He later wrote a condolence letter to the family.
BJP’s Op Sindoor-centred blitz
The BJP is mounting a full-fledged campaign centred around Operation Sindoor, with PM Modi at the centre of it. Over the next week, Modi is set to visit various states to inaugurate a flurry of developmental projects.
It is learnt that the itinerary for these programmes was designed with a clear aim to consolidate the BJP’s core constituents. For instance, last week Modi was in Bikaner in the border state of Rajasthan where he inaugurated, laid the foundation stone, or ‘dedicated to the nation’ developmental projects worth an estimated Rs 26,000 crore. It was in Bikaner that he declared: “…And now, not blood, but hot vermilion (sindoor) is flowing in Modi’s veins.”
The next stop is Gujarat where Modi is set to hold roadshows in three cities Monday—Baroda, Bhuj, and Ahmedabad. The pre-decided routes are to be lined with replicas of the Brahmos supersonic cruise missile and Rafale jets. Hundreds of former Army personnel and at least 10,000 women are expected to attend the three roadshows in Modi’s home state.
After Gujarat, Modi will travel to poll-bound Bihar where he will inaugurate a new airport terminal in Patna. BJP has also planned a roadshow in Patna where the party’s women workers will shower flower petals on Modi for authorising the armed forces to carry out strikes against terror camps across the border. The key focus, though, will be his public address in Bikramganj where BJP plans to capitalise on Operation Sindoor.
Next is Uttar Pradesh’s Kanpur where Modi is expected to address a public meeting on 30 May. During the visit, he will also meet the family of Shubham Dwivedi, who was among the 26 killed in the Pahalgam attack.
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