Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman helped her Minister of State Anurag Thakur duck a question on his alleged hate speech at a press interaction on Wednesday, offering a vehement refusal to comment on his behalf.
Earlier in the day, the Delhi High Court asked why the police had not filed a First Information Report (FIR) for the hate speech made by three BJP leaders in the run-up to the Delhi Assembly election, including Mr. Thakur’s slogan of “desh ke gaddaro ko [traitors of the country]”, to which the crowd had responded, “goli maaro saalon ko [shoot the traitors]”.
When a journalist asked Mr. Thakur for his reaction to the court’s remarks, Ms. Sitharaman intervened immediately. “No reaction,” she said. When the reporter attempted to put the question back to Mr. Thakur, she deflected again. “I am here to address the question. No reaction. Today’s meeting will concentrate on what’s being done with banks,” she said, even as Mr. Thakur remained silent.
