Envoy To Dublin Raps Opposition, Congress Erupts

Indian ambassador to Ireland Akhilesh Mishra stirred a hornet’s nest when he attacked the decades-long erstwhile rule of India’s principal Opposition party, the Congress, which he said had “created a deeply entrenched ecosystem of corruption”. The Congress called for Mr Mishra’s sacking, saying he behaved as a BJP “apparatchik” instead of acting as an envoy of the country.

The controversy started after a newspaper in Ireland, The Irish Times, published an article that reflected its view, which was extremely critical of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government. Mr Mishra, a senior career diplomat belonging to the 1989 batch of the Indian Foreign Service (IFS), promptly issued a rejoinder to the newspaper, but in doing so, he not only defended the government and hailed the leadership of Mr Modi but also ended up attacking the previous Congress party’s governments in the country.

Mr Mishra, who was posted as the envoy in Dublin three years ago, wrote earlier on Monday, “Further to The Irish Times view on the Indian election: Modi tightens his grip’ (April 11), Mr Modi enjoys unprecedented popularity and profile not only in India but globally because of his impeccable personal character, integrity and thought leadership on innovative, inclusive governance and sustainable development. As he does not belong to any elite political family, his personal life inspires millions of ordinary people in India and other developing countries... The people of India are excited to witness the vibrancy of democracy in action on the ground.”
Attacking the Congress, the Indian ambassador said, “The fight against the deeply entrenched ecosystem of corruption (created by the 55-year rule, including the first 30 years, by a single dynastic party in India) is a major factor behind Mr Modi’s ever-growing popularity. There is a huge sense of relief at the grassroots level to witness action being taken and recoveries made from the rich and powerful elites who operated with a sense of entitlement and impunity. The anti-corruption drive itself is so successful because the government has given a free hand to the relevant agencies (their appointment, constitution and operating procedures are quite similar to the corresponding Irish/British agencies) and the adoption of innovative technology to facilitate detection of the nefarious, multilayered web of corruption and tax evasion by politicians, NGOs and the media."

He added: "All cases of corruption are pursued strictly as per the established procedure, with the availability of usual judicial remedies to the affected parties. India also, like the US, Ireland and other European Union (EU) countries, does not have a separate tax code or judicial process for journalists, human rights activists or politically influential individuals, nor is there any provision of separate immunity for them during elections.”

Dismissing the concerns of the Irish newspaper on the issue of the position of secularism in India currently, the envoy further wrote, “A stereotypical description of India as an ‘80 per cent Hindu majority’ nation is quite misleading because Hinduism is inherently inclusive and fundamentally pluralistic, since centuries preceding the birth of Buddha or Christ. Numerically, Hindus of India outnumber the entire population of the EU and North America (continent) and obviously do not represent a monolithic vote bank. The Hindus of India possess incredible diversity of thought, ways of life and political beliefs, covering the entire spectrum from extreme left to extreme right. They regularly vote to power non-‘Hindu nationalists’. Even now, Mr Modi’s BJP rules only in 12 out of 28 states of India. This can happen only in ‘Hindu majority’ India.”

Attacking Mr Mishra, senior Congress leader Jairam Ramesh posted on X that defending the government of India is one thing and is to be expected. But to attack the Opposition parties openly in this manner, like a party apparatchik, is not expected from an ambassador, even if he is a political appointment.

"This is unprofessional and disgraceful behaviour on his part,” he said.

In a subsequent post, Mr Ramesh said, "I stand corrected. This ambassador is actually a career diplomat which makes his comments even more shameful, disgraceful and completely unacceptable. He has actually breached service rules and should be sacked right away.”