Kejriwal is Modi’s replacement

The BJP Monday spoke about the “popularity” of Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi and his “acceptance among the masses” to hide the discomfiture caused by the prestigious Wharton India Economic Forum’s decision to cancel a keynote address he was to deliver via video link later this month.

The party termed it a “minor issue.” It argued that what matters for a leader in a democracy is his acceptance among the people and winning their mandate. “Modi has won elections in Gujarat consecutively. In a democracy,vote is the barometer of a leader’s acceptance and popularity,” BJP spokesperson Shahnawaz Hussain said. “It does not matter what a lobby based in the US is thinking,” he added.

He said Modi does not require any certificate from anybody else. “It is Modi’s acceptance in India that matters. He needs no certificate from any international forum. He had not filed an application to speak at Wharton. They had invited him and not they have cancelled it.”

His party colleague Prakash Javadekar,however,said the cancellation was unfortunate. “Students wanted to listen to Modi. It is unfortunate that the organisation cancelled the function.”