India – Political Theater 

Padmini Arhant

The nation is turned into a graveyard with at least 5 million i.e. 50 lakhs and more deaths and still counting by the hour in the COVID-19 pandemic. The unsustainable health calamity is due to the Indian government’s lack of transparency in public disclosure on COVID-19 related facts and figures right from the beginning in 2020 and up until now. 

The national leadership and the governments gross mishandling of the health and economic crises with political rallies, religious activities and IPL sports cricket event in India are largely responsible for the staggering death toll in the country. 

At present, the Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ruling government feet are on fire with yet another debacle. The controversial Pegasus spyware prompting perversion in the illegal invasion of individual rights, home, life and privacy of particular entities regarded political threat to power and seamless corruption and criminality in the system. 

The rising public outrage at the preventable loss of their loved ones in the family and utter dissatisfaction in government and various apparatus dismal performance in saving lives from the COVID-19 pandemic are far from simmering in density and intensity.

In an attempt to assuage people disapproval, the politics deployment of the same old strategy to deflect public attention from them to film celebrities’ voyeuristic ventures and their endless scandalous life serve well for the state and national government to evade responsibility on burgeoning issues. 

Amid scrutiny by the pandemic affected victims with no hope and relief from the health and economic disaster, the Indian government is also subject to international view on the Indian leadership’s lapses on the pandemic control resulting in the delta variant exacerbating COVID dilemma.

Then the explosive Pegasus spyware saga involving the ruling Indian government dominate the Parliament monsoon session right now. 

Accordingly, to escape the heat the government finds the publicity starved celebrities in the film industry useful during these moments of political discord. 

Many celebrities in film industry and sports in spotlight for tax evasions and black money are normal with no legal consequences except them gaining political favors and media frenzy. The latter often dissipating once the political storm settles in the air. 

The wealth accumulated by some at least the Bollywood actress in the latest scandal along with her spouse ranging from alliance with terror groups to sex trade is not something new and definitely not without government and law enforcement authorities’ knowledge over a period of time. 

The couple’s rendezvous with terror elements, match fixing in the IPL cricket team they owned and profiteered from are merely the tip of the iceberg.  Notwithstanding the couple’s long engaged flesh trade exploiting women and political assignments to them on wanton engagements are cheap theater again with legal repercussions to none. 

Their illicit wealth is laundered by them as large donors to the Prime Minister COVID relief fund that is yet to be accounted for by the serving Indian Prime Minister’s office.

The questions on the embattled Bollywood actress and her spouse’s shady business deals posed with no interest or desire to probe the same money from these celebrities flowing into the Prime Minister’s private fund. 

Hence, the mutual relations between the government, various political factions and celebrities in the film industry along with their business and life partners constitute a convenient quid pro quo.

The media trials on celebrity scandals involving drug, sex and international money laundering provide the scoops and sensations on the incorrigible corrupt network among the rich, the infamous and powerful in society.

The show is repeated with actors in politics, media, film industry and the so-called crime busters synchrony leaving the audience, the public once again taken for a ride in the political cinematic gimmick. 

Could anything worthwhile and relevant to national plight be expected other than diversion and distraction? 

Welcome to the reality show with film industry actress and spouse along with politics and media in the lead positioned at en masse deception and fraud. 

Padmini Arhant 

Author & Presenter

PadminiArhant.com

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