Are 'Modi Go Back' protests enough to change PM's mind?
When Prime Minister Narendra Modi reached Chennai on April 12, the people of Tamil Nadu wanted him to do just one thing: Go back. On April 13, he was back in Delhi, albeit for unrelated reasons.
Delhi: PM Modi arrives at Lok Kalyan Marg metro station, he will travel via metro to 26, Alipur Road, where he will dedicate Dr. Ambedkar National Memorial to the nation. pic.twitter.com/yEz2IMlMnf
— ANI (@ANI) April 13, 2018
The PM’s April 12 visit to Chennai to attend the Defence Expo 2018 - a biennial exhibition of weapons and military hardware - and inaugurate four facilities at the Adyar Cancer Institute was somewhat disrupted, thanks to a few Tamilians who were "unhappy" about the central government’s failure to form the Cauvery Management Board despite the Supreme Court’s order.
In its order on February 16, the apex court stated that the Centre must form a board to oversee the sharing of river water between Karnataka and Tamil Nadu within six weeks or March 29. There have been widespread allegations that the Modi government is reluctant to form the Cauvery Management Board fearing voter blacklash in poll-bound Karnataka.
Whether accidentally or intentionally, this protest resembled the pre-Independence “Simon, Go Back” movement, only instead of John Simon, the people of Tamil Nadu wanted Modi to “go back”.
Armed with black flags, black clothes and black balloons, protestors belonging to various political outfits such as Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, the Tamizhaga Vazhvumurai Katchi and all pro-Tamil groups, demanded that the prime minister return to Delhi. According to a Hindustan Times report, the police detained most of the high-profile protesters, including film directors Bharatiraja, Seeman, Vetrimaran and others, at the Chennai airport.
MDMK chief Vaiko said, "Aren't you the bravest, Mr Modi? Why can't you travel by road? You are going directly into IIT by helicopter and then a wall is broken to let you into Cancer Institute. We have never seen such a cowardly Prime Minister in India. You are a coward. Are we going to shoot you through the black flags? Didn't Nehru face black flags?"
Even the DMK patriarch M Karunanidhi was seen wearing black as a mark of protest against Modi's visit.
A man who does not have the guts to take the road n meet the people, shudders at the thought of people shouting slogans of his failures,face the media with answers,goes maunvrat on problems of this country,turns a blind eye to burning issues has to go back.. #GoBackModi
— khushbusundar (@khushsundar) April 12, 2018
சென்னையில் திமுக எம்.எல்.ஏ மா. சுப்பிரமணியன் இல்லத்தில் ராட்சத கருப்பு பலூன் பறக்கவிடப்பட்டது MODI GO BACK என்ற வாசகம் அடங்கிய பலூனை பறக்கவிட்டு பிரதமருக்கு எதிர்ப்பு தெரிவித்தனர் #NarendraModi pic.twitter.com/iH9dub7MyC
— PuthiyathalaimuraiTV (@PTTVOnlineNews) April 12, 2018
#GoBackModi Baloons not filled by air ..Filled with millions of breath...#GoBackModi pic.twitter.com/EucCRgdG2N
— Suresh Kumar (@KumarCeramic) April 12, 2018
History Repeats Before : Simon Go BackNow : #ModiGoBack #GoBackModi #APDemandsSpecialStatus #BJPCheatedAp #BJPA pic.twitter.com/eveW48wKus
— Social Smuggler (@thenone4u) April 12, 2018
#GoBackModi கெத்து ???? pic.twitter.com/iz626GTBWM
— முகமது வாழவந்தார் (@Vavarism) April 12, 2018
#DMK supremo M Karunanidhi wearing a black shirt as a sign of protest against #PMModi’s visit to Chennai. @TheQuint #CauveryIssue #TamilNadu #GoBackModi pic.twitter.com/0EYXSkppOa
— Smitha T K (@smitha_tarur) April 12, 2018
Scenes across Tamil Nadu right now. #GoBackModi pic.twitter.com/IRMmdlLE0K
— Ruchira Chaturvedi (@RuchiraC) April 12, 2018
Even on social media, the protest managed to make a spectacular impact. Devoid of all the characteristics of a paid or manufactured trend, #GoBackModi managed to reach the number one spot on Twitter’s international trends.
Hashtag #GoBackModi is now way past half a million tweets.Mind Blown, Guys.Meanwhile BJP's paid IT Cell tried to trend #TNWelcomesPMModi and failed really hard.???????? pic.twitter.com/unqrIVrRDu
— Keerthi???? (@TheDesiEdge) April 12, 2018
The protests did not end there. The PM also faced a silent protest by students at IIT Madras as he walked a few steps from the helicopter into his car; students who held posters demanding creation of the Cauvery Management Board.
IIT M students holding placards, wearing black, in a protest against the visit of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Chennai visit as his convoy entered the campus road. PM was on his way from the helipad to attend an event at the Cancer Institute in the nearby campus @IndianExpress pic.twitter.com/MfBK7aZAcO
— Arun Janardhanan (@arunjei) April 12, 2018
A journalist also tweeted that as per sources PM Modi's air route to the Defence Expo also had to be supposedly changed in the last minute due to protesters floating black balloons near airport.
The Centre’s and by extension the prime minister’s failure to address an issue this important is sure to spell trouble for the ruling party not just at present, but also in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, which is but a few short months away. The BJP’s popularity in the southern states has been shaky at best. Kerala, a communist bastion, became a pioneer in this form of anti-Modi protest when the people of the state coined the iconic phrase “Po mone Modi” after the PM compared Kerala with Somalia at an election rally.
With the high-stakes Karnataka Assembly polls right soon to be underway, is this peaceful protest a sign of things to come for the BJP?