Social media has been trending #resignmodi for days, as citizens are felt abandoned by the government as Covid-19 crisis continues unabated. Citizens who have Covid-19, or are caretakers for family members have been appealing to social organisations, citizens groups and sending SOS on social media to help search for oxygen, hospital beds, ambulances, medicines, even food and most tragically help with cremating those succumbing to Covid-19. Many have found help and support from fellow citizens, many more have unfortunately died before help could reach.
Strangely even politicians who are on social media amplifying such SOS calls, and organising volunteers etc. are not those in power at the moment at either the state or central governments. Many belong to the Congress, some are independent and identify themselves as social workers, and even those who are a part of the Bharatiya Janata Party are not elected representatives yet.
Perhaps it is this sense of abandonment that has led over four lakh citizens to sign a Change.org petition demanding that Prime Minister Modi must resign, taking responsibility for what many citizens, and the world media, are calling a gross mismanagement of the Covid-19 emergency that India is now dealing with.
The petition started by Mrunal Mathuria, who identified himself as a”concerned Indian youth” was uploaded on Change.org on May 1, by the end of May 2, it looks to cross over five lakh signatories. Appeals to sign have gone out across the country, in various whatsapp groups, on social media and as individual messages. Mathuria’s call is, “We will not back out now. This should reach the deaf ears of our Prime Minister.”
In fact, in wake of the BJP’s failure in West Bengal, the petitioners had updated the demand saying, “Bengal has kicked out Modi, we need to kick him out of Center
Bengal was Mamta vs Modi and while we might have differences with Mamta, but atleast it is a reason to celebrate that people have voted out Modi. Now we need move him out of Center.”
He writes that the “collapsed healthcare system of the country is brutally exposed at the cost of millions of innocent lives.” And has called out the Health Ministry for “endorsing Patanjali’s Coronil as a preventive medication for Covid to the mass gatherings at Haridwar for Kumbh at a time when cases were surging rampantly, the actions and statement of Prime Minister and the Cabinet Ministers has made us think about the Government’s scientific temperament.”
According to the petition, “The Government has always been in an election frenzy mode to appease their vote bank”. He says that the “acute shortage of oxygen, hospital beds, ambulances and space in crematoria has made us question about what measures did the Government take to prepare for the second wave of Covid in the past one year.”
Mathuria highlights what he calls “heinous acts committed by our Prime Minister in the past one year”. These include:
1. Instituting a Lockdown in March 2020 without consulting ICMR appointed Covid Task Force scientists.
2. Did not use the lockdown time to sustainable build up the nation’s healthcare infrastructure and removed insurance cover
3. His administration offered little in the way of support for those who lost their job or income as a result of restrictions;
4. Rather than taking advantage of low case counts in prior months, his government offered an air of triumphalism
5. Allowed enormous religious festivals and crowded sporting competitions to go ahead.
6. Held mass election rallies cum super-spreader events
7. His administration blamed minority groups for outbreaks
8. Arrested questioning journalists.
9. Demanded Facebook & Twitter delete posts critical of the administration
10. Invoked Draconian colonial era laws like Epidemic Diseases Act of 1897 to give power to state govts to enforce stringent lockdown measures at their whim.
He appeals that it is time that the nation should “leave our differences aside, come together and firmly demand resignation from our Prime Minister to save India from current and future mishaps.” As the petition stated by Mrunal Mathuria continues to gather pace, people are sharing reasons for signing such as, “He has only made so many promises and delivered none..His divide and rule attitude has brought a lot of unrest among religions,state,and people in general.”
Mrunal Mathuria has updated that he has been getting hate messages on social media as his petition is gathering lakhs of signatures. “We won’t back down despite the trolling and the hate I am getting on my social media profiles” he posted an update. His petition also has over 28,123 comments and counting. “We won’t stop! Modi must bend,” stated Mathuria. The petition may be viewed and signed here.
Meanwhile, #ResignModi has been one of the top trending Hashtags on Twitter as over the past few days. Facebook too had many such posts but soon it blocked posts tagged #ResignModi. The posts were restored hours later, as a controversy erupted over government’s requests to remove social media content critical of the way the Covid crisis is being handled. Later, Facebook claimed that it barred the hashtag by “mistake” a Facebook spokesperson was quoted by the media stating, “We temporarily blocked this hashtag by mistake, not because the Indian government asked us to, and have since restored it.”
Related:
Enough is enough: Delhi HC after 8 Covid patients dead
We have ensured nobody was left without oxygen in the country: Centre to Delhi HC
Are UP hospitals facing oxygen shortage despite CM’s claims?
UP: Covid crisis claims at least 706 primary teachers and kin owing to election duty!