Whatever else he may be, this wasn’t the prime minister of a self-styled ‘Vishwaguru’ nation. Not the man who claims India’s drumbeat echoes across the world — or so his usual swagger may lead you to think. This didn’t even sound like a leader. Nor even a stage actor delivering punchlines.

If you heard the prime minister’s statement in Parliament on the West Asia crisis, you’d struggle to recognise him. Gone was the bluster, the bravado, the theatrical flourishes. This was a dull recital, marked by the anxiety to not deviate from the script — lest a word slip, lest a call come in from Washington.

No quips, no zingers. Even the ritual desk-thumping from the benches came in half-hearted taps, as if to tick a box. You could mistake this speech for a manager’s report or an accountant’s ledger. Or perhaps the backstage monologue of an actor written out of the script. It was not the address of a leader.

How could it be? The turn of events in West Asia has left the prime minister with very little to say. Despite all the eager deference to the United States, Donald Trump seems in no mood to indulge him. Even after bending the knee on a trade deal,........

© National Herald