There’s more to the NewsNation interview with PM Modi than talk of him owning a digital camera and sending an email from Mumbai in 1998.
A clip from the interview that has gone viral on social media suggests that the Prime Minister was privy to the questions before the interview.
In a shot where PM Modi is asked to recite some of his own poetry, the camera zooms in as he turns the pages from a file that is handed over to him. Above the poem, you can spot the question that the anchors asked a few seconds ago.
Alt News founder Pratik Sinha explains in a thread.
There have been allegations that Narendra Modi only gives scripted interviews. Divya Spandana, head of Congress’ IT cell, posted the video and said, “So the @narendramodi interview with @NewsNationTV was *badly* scripted just like his other interviews, but here’s proof!”
Many others also took to Twitter, with sarcastic comments.
‘Even Casual Questions Scripted’
Many could not believe that even such a friendly interview needed to be scripted.
YouTuber Dhruv Rathee said, “Not only are Modi's Interviews seemingly scripted, but it turns out that even casual questions are scripted line by line.”
“I couldn’t believe that even such a friendly interview with a friendly channel could be scripted,” said another Twitter user.
Media Shouldn’t Allow Scripted Interviews
Journalist Swati Chaturvedi said media is to blame for allowing these “fraud scripted interviews.”
Gaffes Despite Scripted Interview
Despite having the answers, Modi still goofed up, said another Twitter user.
(At The Quint, we question everything. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member today.)