Commonwealth meet: Only leaders of subcontinent faced protests in London

Commonwealth leaders were in Windsor for what one TV anchor mischievously described as a “knees up in the sun”. Knees up or not, some of them must have been happy to get away from London finally just to shake off those pesky protesters. And here I’m thinking of the trio from the subcontinent: Narendra Modi, Shahid Abbasi and Sheikh Hasina.

It may have been only a coincidence but is noteworthy nevertheless that of the 53 Commonwealth heads of government, who are here, they were the only ones who had the dubious distinction of being shouted at and abused by demonstrators angry over their domestic policies.

Between them, prime ministers of India, Pakistan and Bangladesh didn’t exactly make a great advertisement either for their respective countries or the region as a whole. The focus of protests ranged from human rights abuses and attacks on free speech to rise of ugly nationalism, and a culture of impunity fostered by ruling dispensations in Delhi, Islamabad and Dhaka by failing to act against their supporters spreading hate and targeting minorities.

It was embarrassing to see India in the company of countries dogged by religious extremism, intolerance and lack of democracy. Indophile Brits shook their heads in disbelief.

“Good heavens, what’s going on back there?” asked one.

Meanwhile, while Abbasi and Hasina took the protests on their chin and moved on, Modi’s local minders —always ready to rise to the occasion—were quick to organise a counter rally of loyalists to cheer the boss. They were brought in coaches, parked at a respectable distance from the venue, and reportedly offered free refreshments.

A noisy and intimidating lot, some promptly picked a fight with a group of women holding a silent protest accusing the BJP’s of “communalising” rape. Several journalists covering the anti-Modi protest complained of being intimidated by his supporters prompting a strongly-worded statement from Indian Journalists’ Association.

“A strongly condemns the threats and violence faced by concerned members,” it said calling upon police to act on complaints they might receive.

Neither of the three leaders took questions from the media; and anyone suspected of dissenting views was not allowed to get anywhere near them. A group of local Indian students had their tickets to Modi’s “town hall” reportedly withdrawn apparently because the questions they had submitted did not go down well with the organisers.

The enduring image of that meeting will always be of Prasoon Joshi, once the darling of liberal intellectuals, plumb new depths of obsequiousness while interviewing the prime minister.