Indian Prime Minister Modi skips Norwegian media event sparking controversy over press freedom

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s recent visit to Norway has sparked controversy after he refused to engage directly with journalists on several occasions. During a meeting with Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Store, Modi walked away without responding to questions from Helle Lyng Svendsen, a journalist from the daily newspaper Dagsavisen. Later that day, Svendsen asked a senior official of India’s Ministry of External Affairs about human rights in India, but was met with deflection and anger.

Modi has not held a single news conference in India during his 12-year term in office, and when abroad, he has only rarely fielded questions. The incidents in Norway have renewed criticism from media organizations, which point to India’s declining rankings in press freedom indices.

On Monday, Modi wrote on X that he had addressed a “press meet” with Store, but did not take any questions from reporters. Svendsen later took to social media to criticize the Indian prime minister, stating that foreign leaders are usually allowed to ask questions during their visits. She also questioned the Indian Ministry of External Affairs’s Secretary about human rights in India.

The Norwegian Prime Minister initially addressed questions from his own journalists but not from Indian reporters. However, he later spoke with Indian journalists as well. Human rights organizations have pointed to a series of laws that they say undermine India’s secular constitution and have criticized Modi for refusing to engage on these issues.

Modi is currently in Italy, where he will meet with Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni on Wednesday. The incidents in Norway have highlighted the challenges faced by journalists in India, who are often reluctant to ask tough questions of those in power.

Source: Al Jazeera