Kamal Hassan flays Modi govt for manner in which COVID-19 situation is being handled

Chennai, Apr 6 () Makkal Needhi Maiam (MNM) founderKamal Haasan on Monday flayed the BJP-led government at theCentre for its handling of the situation arising out ofCovid-19 pandemic, saying the "same mistake of demonetisationis being repeated, albeit at a much bigger scale."

In an "open letter" to the Prime Minister, the actor-politician said Narendra Modi's "vision failed" vis-a-vis theongoing "ill-planned" lockdown and warned that the Centreshould not be a "balcony government", alluding to the middle-classes and the relatively well-off.

"While demonetisation led to loss of savings andlivelihood of the poorest, this ill-planned lockdown isleading us to a fatal combination of loss of both life andlivelihood," Haasan said in the strongly-worded letter.

Modi had last month announced a 21-day lockdown tillApril 14, as part of the government's fight against the spreadof COVID19, while insisting on social distancing.

Noting that the first confirmed coronavirus case wasreported on December 8, Haasan said the entire world knew itwas going to wreak havoc of an unprecedented kind.

India's first case was reported on January 30, he said.He uploaded the letter on his Twitter page.

"We had seen what happened to Italy. Yet we did not learnour lessons early enough. When we eventually woke out of ourslumber, you ordered an entire nation of 1.4 billion people toshut down within four hours. A mere four hour notice periodfor people when you had a four month notice period," he said.

Visionary leaders are the ones who work on solutions longbefore problems become big, he added.

Recalling his earlier open letter to the PrimeMinister on March 23, Haasan said he had then pleaded for thewelfare of labourers and workers.

However, the next day, the announcement "of a strict andimmediate lockdown, almost demonetisation style," was made.

"I was taken aback but I chose to trust you, my electedleader,the one we would like to believe knows best. I hadchosen to trust you even when you announced demonetisation buttime proved I was wrong. Time proved you too were wrong sir,"he said.

He said the poor had nobody to look upto except Modi.

"On one hand you are asking the more privileged people toput up a spectacle of lights while on the other hand the poormans plight is itself becoming a shameful spectacle,"he said.

While some people lit oil lamps in their balconies,thepoor were struggling to gather enough oil to bake their nextroti, Haasan said.

Modi's last two addresses had him trying to calm thepeople which was necessary in these trying times but there wassomething more urgent as well as important than that,he noted.

While COVID-19 will continue to find more victims, weare creating a fertile playground for Hunger(H), Exhaustion(E)and Deprivation(D) of the poor, Haasan said.

"HED'20 is a malady that is smaller in profile but fardeadlier compared to COVID-19. Its impact will be felt longafter COVID-19 has vanished," he said.

Taking a dig at Modi for "unleashing a spiritedelection-style campaign idea," Haasan said "it seems you arecomfortable outsourcing responsible behaviour to the commonpeople and transparency to the state governments," he said.

"But I am a follower of Periyar and Gandhi and I knowthey were intellectuals first. Its the intellect that guidesone into choosing a path of righteousness, equality andprosperity for all," he said.

Modi was the leader of 1.4 bn Indians and even hisnaysayers clapped and cheered for the health workers, Haasansaid, in an apparent reference to the earlier Janata Curfewwhere the Prime Minister had asked people to acknowledge thehealth workers' contribution.

"We will comply to your wishes and orders but ourcompliance must not be confused as our subjugation," he added.

He also slammed "your system" for failing to stopcongregations of "ignorant and foolish people" in differentparts of the country, saying they have become the biggest hubsfor the spread of the epidemic in India.

However, he did not name anybody. COR SA APRRAVINDRANATH APRRAVINDRANATH