A press conference addressed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi is not a regular occurrence. To be sure, he did dozens of interviews in the run-up to the 2024 elections. But three prominent occasions where he has addressed the press stand out -- all in White House.
The first one was in June 2023 in the East Room as he concluded his state visit to the US. And the second and third were on Thursday, when President Donald Trump, after the opening remarks at the Oval Office, opened the floor for questions, and then, back in the East Room, where Trump characteristically moderated a press conference for over 40 minutes.
And guess what — Modi is good at the back and forth with reporters. This should be no surprise given his obvious political sharpness and skilled use of language, the ability to condense and convey a thought in simple and accessible terms and his humour. This is not about whether one agrees or disagrees with the answer, but about the fact that there is a certain ease and comfort with which he engaged with a hall packed with journalists, not all of them friendly.
This was reflected in two questions that came his way on Thursday evening. The first, from an American reporter, was about his conversation with billionaire tycoon Elon Musk, the head of the Department of Government Efficiency, and whether they had discussed any business deal.
{{/usCountry}}This was reflected in two questions that came his way on Thursday evening. The first, from an American reporter, was about his conversation with billionaire tycoon Elon Musk, the head of the Department of Government Efficiency, and whether they had discussed any business deal.
{{/usCountry}}Modi said, in Hindi, “You asked about Elon Musk. See, I have had a very old relationship with him. I have known him from the time when I was not even the prime minister and was still the chief minister. And today, he came with his family. And it is natural that I met him in a familial environment.”
Modi then delivered his punch line, combining flattery of Trump with a deflection of whether any business proposal was indeed discussed. “And as far as the word deal is concerned, I believe only one person in the world has a copyright on it. And that is Trump,” pointing to the President on his left. As Trump heard the translation, he was all smiles and said, “That’s very nice.”
The second, potentially more tricky, question came from a second American reporter who described industrialist Gautam Adani as a Modi “ally” and “one of the wealthiest men in Asia” and asked the PM if he had asked Trump to take action on the case.
In an attempt to first undermine the premise of the question itself, Modi said, “The first thing is that India is a democratic country. Our philosophy is of Vasudhaiva Kutumbkam, the whole world is one family. We consider the whole world our family. And I consider each Indian my family.” He then said, with a note of annoyance, “The leaders of two countries don’t sit or meet or talk on such personal matters.”
Again, whether the question or the answer was adequate is not the point. The point is that Modi knew how to deal with it in a way that was both succinct and clear.