How to hold India’s leaders accountable

PM Modi, for nine long years, has failed to hold a press conference and many people have concluded he’s evading accountability. Let's examine this

We, in India, believe a prime minister’s (PM’s) agreement to hold press conferences is the true test of his willingness to be accountable to the people. The fact he has to confront hundreds of journalists suggests he has to answer tough questions and cannot get away with prevarication. Because Narendra Modi, for nine long years, has failed to hold a press conference, many have concluded he’s evading accountability.

In the rest of the democratic world, true accountability is achieved by a different journalistic process.(AP)

Not for a moment would I quarrel with the conclusion, but I have serious reservations about the test. In the rest of the democratic world, true accountability is achieved by a different journalistic process. But I’ll come to that later. First, let me explain why our faith in press conferences is mistaken.

To begin with, they comprise a plethora of journalists representing a multitude of media. Everyone is anxious to ask a question and it’s, almost certainly, different in each case. This ensures that even if the press conference lasts for hours, the PM will rarely, if ever, be under stress.

Let me explain why. Each journalist is permitted one question and when it’s the next person’s turn, he’s likely to change focus or, even, subject. That means there’s little persistence and, therefore, not much pressure. The PM may get away with inadequate or, even, faulty answers.

It’s only if the PM carelessly stumbles, or says something factually incorrect, that he’ll be caught out. That’s good luck, not good journalism.

The truth is the spectacle of a press conference, with television broadcasting it live, suggests the PM is in the dock. But that’s an illusion. It’s only with persistent questioning, scrupulously examining his answers and pointing out errors or omissions, that he can be pushed to the wall. In a press conference, that’s unlikely to happen.

This is why in mature democracies, the preferred method of making leaders accountable is the political interview. Here, a single journalist engages the PM and, more importantly, sets the agenda for the questioning. The journalist decides the subjects to be raised as well as the persistence with which each is pursued. He determines when the subject will change, and he has the right to carry on questioning till he believes the PM has answered adequately. It’s this that makes for a true grilling.

Of course, it goes without saying the journalist has to be well-informed, assertive, even, fearless. He certainly should not be in awe of the PM.

This is why Rob Burley, in his delightful study of political interviews, writes: “Political interviews exist to hold those in power accountable. They’re not for the politicians’ benefit but for the public’s.” Although Burley is talking about how the suitability of candidates for high office can be best judged through political interviews, what he says applies equally to those already ensconced in them. “Such interviews are the best means our political culture has devised to reveal character, competence and credibility. We must demand them.”

Now Modi, no doubt, has given television interviews. Several, in fact. The question is who were some of the journalists who got them? What were the issues raised? What sort of questions were asked? Watch some of the interviews and the answers will depress you. In some cases, the PM was gifted a platform to say what he wants. Often to criticise the Opposition.

This is why the Jeremy Paxmans and Brian Waldens stand out. Walden destroyed then British PM Margaret Thatcher, not by aggression but by creeping under her skin and unnerving her. Paxman reduced Michael Howard, then home secretary, to a wreck because he asked the same question 12 times. By the time both finished, it was glaringly obvious Thatcher and Howard couldn’t answer. Not wouldn’t but couldn’t. That’s what made them accountable.

The day our PMs are questioned with similar relentless determination, we’ll see a dramatic shift in our politics. Our politicians will change. They’ll stop lying to us.

Karan Thapar is the author of Devil’s Advocate: The Untold Story The views expressed are personal