Recently, the cover story for the January 23 edition of The Economist focused on the rise of an ‘intolerant’ India under the rule of PM Modi.
It’s certainly not the first time that The Economist has written a cover story on PM Modi or the state of affairs in India. Only, this time, the cover story is starkly opposite to their story from 2010, when the conversation was about India’s expected pace of growth. At the time, India was under the rule of the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance government of Manmohan Singh.
Consequently, Twitterati compared the two stories, and took it as a way to comment on the way India has ‘developed’ over the last decade:
I'll make such a wonderful India that all Americans will stand in line to get a Visa for India". ~ Bal Narendra Modi.
— Tufail Banday (@Tufail_Banday) January 24, 2020
PS: Cover photo THE ECONOMIST (Jan 2020) pic.twitter.com/REouUiftSs
The cover story of the 24rd January edition of the London-based magazine @TheEconomist titles “Intolerant India – How Modi is endangering the world’s biggest democracy”, after the US based @TIME magazine addressed Mr. @narendramodi as “India’s divider-in-chief” last year. pic.twitter.com/ZQagHLR6qm
— ▪️Adam▪️ (@Adamiington) January 24, 2020
Can’t stop laughing at this. I must also say #BoycottEconomy https://t.co/jyCdKfVYbl
— anuj jindal (@anujjin50053822) January 25, 2020
Pic 1 : The Economist Cover
— @Masavvar_alig (@Masavvar_Ali) January 24, 2020
October 2010
India under Dr MMS
Pic 2 : The Economist Cover
January 2020
India under Narendra Modi
WHAT A FALL ! pic.twitter.com/FmVLl5FC6V
Dear @narendramodi,
— Rohin Makkar (@rohino) January 24, 2020
I am not really sure if you like to read magazines or not. I don’t you’ve ever developed reading habits. How about you pick up the latest issue of The Economist & read the cover story? It doesn’t have good things to say about your governance. Why’s that so!
Modi Ji has made it to the cover of The Economist. Mubarak ho. pic.twitter.com/pkz30srS79
— Mirza Waheed (@MirzaWaheed) January 23, 2020
Hahaha, did you give the same advice and blocked Time and Economist when Mr Modi graced their covers as the salvation of India. Prob is, they are not Godi Media and the performance appraisal happens in real time.
— Sanaa (@sanaa_blue) January 25, 2020
The concerns over centralisation of power in the first year turned to scepticism over the reforms route in 2017. The question mark before the general elections of 2019, has ended in a complete negation of the path India has embarked on, in 2020. (2/2) #CAA_NRC_NPR pic.twitter.com/yeT5mR5HPc
— churumuri (@churumuri) January 24, 2020
The rise and fall of Modi hype, told through the cover of the Economist. https://t.co/FGUhsgCLJM
— Sukumar Muralidharan (@sukumar_md) January 24, 2020
PM Modi’s website had a link to the same Economist when he was featured on its cover in 2014 in a positive light. But now The Economist is a mouthpiece of the snobbish and neo-imperialist British!
— Neeraj Vedwan (@nvedwan) January 25, 2020
Economist cover story is the result of a new global consensus about India: that Modi is a threat to our democracy, is incompetent to handle an economic crisis he started with demonetisation,& is targeting minorities with unrestrained menace. Inviting Bolsanaro further proves it.
— Krishan Partap Singh (@RaisinaSeries) January 24, 2020
Today “The Economist” magazine criticized Modi’s economic policy and wrote that this govt doesn’t want to hear a bit of dissent.
— IRONY MAN (@karanku100) January 23, 2020
As expected, Modi govt took this criticism very positively by declaring it “anti-India” magazine. 😁#BoycottEconomy
Now modi bhakts will try to find some relation between the economist and pakistan and will start trending boycott hashtags and will themselves prove how tolerant they are.
— dimo_dranaren (@eeyamceesquare) January 23, 2020
I am SO glad the Economist article on Modi putting India’s democracy in peril mentions “a largely fawning media” and urges the Supreme Court to “show some spine.” Finally the truth is out there.
— Rupa Gulab (@rupagulab) January 25, 2020
This isn’t the first time that foreign media, including The Time, The Economist, and others, has called out Indian politicians and the way the country is functioning under a BJP-dominated rule. However, despite international criticism and people’s protests, there seems to be little change in the way the government is functioning.
