Lie-Peddler

Fabrications have long been a part of Indian politics. Politicians lie to puff themselves up (Sonia Gandhi claimed having a degree in English from Cambridge), to polish their résumés (Smriti Irani claimed having a degree from Yale) and to cover up their misdeeds (MMS pleaded pressures of coalition). But RaGa appears to have taken misinformation, deception and vilification to an entirely new level of falsehood.

From his days peddling the false notion that Prime Minister Modi, who was visiting Kerala, of insulting the state's Chief Minister Oommen Chandy by not inviting him to the inauguration of the statue of former Kerala CM R Shankar (the truth being that the Chief Minister expressed his inability to attend after having been invited), to his statement that the tallest in the world, Patel’s statue was being built in China (L&T had to tell him that they were making it at site), to his inflated claims about how NDA government is responsible for imprudent bank lending (the then RBI governor countered by saying that all bad loans in question were given out at the behest of UPA), to his claim about Mr Manohar Parrikar telling him about Rafale deal (a discussion that never happened), RaGa is now trafficking in hyperbole, distortion and fabrication around the Rafale deal, on practically a daily basis.

RaGa’s deception was extraordinarily successful in the state-elections held towards the end of last year. Having succeeded in exploiting the “stupidity of the Indian voter” through his promises of infeasible farm-loan waivers, RaGa is possibly enthused to attempting to exploit public ignorance and stupidity at the general elections once again. In his press conference on the morning of 12 February 19, besides accusing him of treason, RaGa said that NaMo has lost all credibility. Everyone is entitled to his own opinion, but not to his own facts. The public ignorance that makes lying an effective political strategy is extremely difficult to overcome. Peddling lies may be more dangerous than peddling drugs just going by the number of victims. Politics preys on people's naivety. After all, the incentive for politicians is to get elected, not tell the truth.

In part, this represents yet another way that RaGa is operating on his own terms, but it also reflects a broader decline in standards of truth for political discourse. A look at politicians over the past half-century makes it clear that lying did not begin with RaGa. Still, the scope of RaGa’s falsehoods raises questions about whether the brakes on straying from the truth and the consequences for politicians’ being caught saying things that just are not true have diminished over time.

Whit Ayres, a Republican political consultant in Washington, likes to tell his clients that there are “three keys to credibility.”

“One, never defend the indefensible,” he says. “Two, never deny the undeniable. And No. 3 is: Never lie.”

Did RaGa take his advice?  Seriously??

__________________________________
Feel free to share the post with your friends and networks!!
You are invited to follow the author’s blog in HINDI -

• https://www.facebook.com/vichaaronkeeduniyamein 

--------------------------------------------------------------------