PM Modi’s labelling of Rajiv Gandhi as ‘Bhrashtachari No. 1’ sinks political discourse | The Indian Express

PM Modi’s labelling of Rajiv Gandhi as ‘Bhrashtachari No. 1’ sinks political discourse | The Indian Express

Written by Rajmohan Gandhi |Updated: May 7, 2019 9:15:24 am

The writer is research professor at Centre for South Asian and Middle Eastern Studies, University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign.

PM Modi’s labelling of Rajiv Gandhi as ‘Bhrashtachari No. 1’ sinks political discourse

Even if someone then believed that Rajiv had tolerated corruption, would they say to his son 28 years later that “your father ended his life as India’s most corrupt man”?

For three years or so of his premiership, Rajiv Gandhi was indeed termed “Mr Clean” by what was then an independent media, not by persons close to him. (Express Archive)

As someone who 30 years ago stood as the Janata Dal candidate against Rajiv Gandhi in Amethi, I may be allowed to comment on Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s now infamous remark about the earlier PM.