 "Subramanian Swamy's 'paranoid style' of politics worries governance watchers")
Columnist Sadanand Dhume has cautioned the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) over party MP Subramanian Swamy's attacks against Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor Raghuram Rajan and his willingness to "drag just about anyone into the social media gutter with him".
Dhume, in his blog hosted by Times of India, asked whether it was appropriate for the BJP, which he described as the "ruling party of the world’s seventh largest economy", to indulge Swamy's recent spate of attacks against Rajan. Dhume went on to describe Swamy's actions as the embodiment of "the paranoid style in Indian politics".
Dhume's argument was that for the BJP, a party he says is "still in the process of consolidating its position as the country’s natural party of governance", embracing Swamy's style of politics could prove "fatal".
"With some 2.7 million followers on Twitter, Swamy has the power to drag just about anyone into the social media gutter with him. You can’t blame people for choosing discretion as the better part of valour," wrote Dhume, and subsequently found himself in Swamy's crosshairs on the aforementioned micro-blogging site.
Swamy, for his part, has not taken too kindly to Dhume's words. He took to Twitter to call out Dhume, saying that the "American writer" had called his followers "as gutter". However, Swamy did not stop there, in stead, he went to call upon his followers to give Dhume a "guided tour" through "this gutter".
While Dhume belaboured on the larger point of Swamy's politics, he is not alone in specifically disapproving Swamy's recent attacks against Rajan.
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Late last month, the Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (Assocham) said that the RBI had played a "pivotal role" in ensuring India's growth and in the absence of some "serious offence" an incumbent (Rajan) should not be "targeted".
"Surely, it is the prerogative of the government to appoint and re-appoint a person to the coveted position of RBI governor, but the kind of media statements being issued about Raghuram Rajan do not augur well for the country's financial system," Assocham said without naming Swamy.
Even Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley slammed "personal attacks" on Rajan, again without naming Swamy.
In the last few weeks, Business Standard spoke to several CEOs who have come forward to support Rajan as the governor battled barbs from Swamy. From Rahul Bajaj to Adi Godrej to Harsh Goenka, corporate leaders have asked for his term to be extended when it ends in September this year.
Last month, Swamy had written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi seeking Rajan's immediate sacking while alleging that he was "mentally not fully Indian" and had "willfully" wrecked the economy.
"The reason why I recommend this is that I am shocked by the willful and apparently deliberate attempt by Dr Rajan to wreck the Indian economy," Swamy wrote, adding that Rajan's concept of raising interest rates to contain inflation was "disastrous".
On May 12, speaking to reporters outside Parliament, Swamy, in his first salvo against Rajan, had said: "In my opinion, RBI governor is not appropriate for the country. I don't want to speak much about him. He has hiked interest rates in the garb of controlling inflation that has damaged the country."
"The sooner he is sent back to Chicago, the better it would be," he added.
Ever since Swamy was nominated to the Rajya Sabha, on April 25 this year, he has been on the attack.
Days after his nomination, in late April, Swamy sought to drag Congress President Sonia Gandhi's name in the controversial AgustaWestland helicopter contract bribery case.
The very next day, Swamy was again to be found in the centre of a political slugfest, when he made controversial remarks in the Rajya Sabha, which were immediately expunged by the Chair.
Deputy Chairman P J Kurien also ordered the media to not report the remarks.
However, chastising Swamy, Kurien had said: "I will take action against you. Subramanian Swamy you are unnecessarily provoking. I will have to take action against you... You are provoking."