Speak more often: ‘Maun-Mohan Singh’ gives it back to ‘Maun’ Modi

Former prime minister Manmohan Singh, who was once advised by the then Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi to not remain silent on key issues, has given it back to his successor.

Singh hit out at Prime Minister Modi for his long silence on the incidents of horrific Kathua and Unnao rape cases and said that Modi “should follow his own advice to me” and “speak more often”.

During the last days of Singh’s tenure, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Modi had questioned his silence on key issues and even mocked him by calling him "Maun-Mohan Singh".

“But I think the Prime Minister should follow his own advice to me and he should speak more often. Through press (reports) I know that he used to criticize me for not speaking up. I feel that the advice that he used to give me, he should follow it himself,” Singh said in an interview to The Indian Express.

The former prime minister also accused several BJP-ruled states of “turning a blind eye” to the law and order issues, especially women’s safety and the lynching of Muslims and attacking Dalits in the region.

“People are misusing the authority of government. They think they can get away with it…law and order is the responsibility of state governments. The BJP government at the Centre could send instructions to its state governments to ensure that law and order is properly enforced, and minorities and Dalits and women are treated properly,” Singh said.