Interviewing Hafiz Saeed: Why BJP is getting dragged into Vaidik's mess

The meeting between senior Indian journalist Ved Pratap Vaidik and 26/11 mastermind Hafeez Saeed has sparked a huge debate since Vaidik is allegedly close to the BJP and yoga guru Ramdev. The Congress has taken the opportunity to hit out at the government claiming it had “direct involvement” in this meet. The issue was raised in Parliament, leading to the adjournment of the Rajya Sabha twice during question hour. Even outside Parliament, Congress leaders cried themselves hoarse, saying that Vaidik was “very close to Sangh parivar” and rejected the government’s contention that it had nothing to do with the meeting. [caption id=“attachment_1618737” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Ved Pratap Vaidik in a file photo.[/caption] “This is a very serious issue with regard to national security. The PMO is directly involved in it. Vaidik belonged to the same organisation Vivekananda International Foundation, whose three members Nripendra Misra, PK Mishra and Ajit Doval are working for the Narendra Modi government as Principal Secretary, Additional Principal Secretary in PMO and as National Security Advisor (NSA) respectively,” party spokesperson Shakeel Ahmed said at an AICC briefing later on Monday evening. However the NDA goverment distanced itself from the issue with Finance Minister Arun Jaitley saying in Parliament that the government had nothing, “directly, indirectly or even remotely”, to do with any journalist meeting Saeed. While journalists do have the right to meet whoever they please, Vaidik’s account of what they spoke about has raised questions about the agenda of the meeting. Vaidik told ANI, “Hafeez Saeed asked me about Narendra Modi. He said Modi is dangerous and now he has become the Prime Minister of India. He said that Modi is dangerous for the whole of South Asia. I said that his thinking is not right. There is no need to fear Modi.” Like in other interviews, during a debate on NDTV, Vaidik defended himself saying, “I did not decide and meet him. I did not think before going to Pakistan that I will meet Saeed.” Asked about if he thought of the consequences, Vaidik said, “I have been a journalist for 55 years. Till today I have never thought of not meeting people. I have met many dangerous people. I am of the opinion that no matter how dangerous you are, the solution to the problem can only be through talks. For people a like me who is not related to the government I go by the higher law and morality and as a journalist everyone’s door is open for me. I have interviewed Maoists and even LTTE leader Prabhakaran.” Given that despite his proximity to the BJP, Vaidik is after all a journalist, is the Congress making an issue out of nothing? Party spokesperson Sanjay Jha told NDTV, “The critical aspect is that Baba Ramdev has been christened by a senior leader of the BJP as the Mahatma Gandhi of the modern times. It is impossible to believe that his close political aide who has also been called an RSS emissary did not have an agenda when he met Saeed.” While Jha did agree that journalists have the right to interview who they want, he said, “It is Vaidik’s proximity to the BJP that raises questions.” Party spokesperson Nalin Kohli said, “It is an astounding argument. Priyanka Gandhi is married to Robert Vadra. Are you telling us that even Priyanka Gandhi is involved in the land scams?. The government has said it is not involved.” “We should not be giving publicity to terrorists, but then journalists have to take that call… I don’t agree with Saeed being interviewed. But I cannot curb his rights. You can disagree. To link a journalist’s interview with a terrorist to the BJP is not correct,” Kohli said. Journalists like Shahid Siddiqui have criticised Vaidik, there are others who don’t think it was such a big deal. Tavleen Singh said, “I am puzzled. As a journalist I tried to meet Hafeez Saeed. I have met Osama Bin Laden by accident. The LeT is a wing of the Pakistani army.” While Siddiqui said he was all for freedom for journalists, he added that Vaidik should have made things clear. “I have gone to Pakistan many times. And when we met all sorts of people. We spoke to our high commissioner when it came to speaking to someone where we had doubts. When we are outside India and especially in Pakistan we are extremely careful about who we meet,” he said. Meanwhile former diplomat KC Singh argued, “I have know Vaidik for a long time. The problem is that Vaidik is not a pure journalist, he is a social activist. His persona is not just of a journalist. As a result when he meets Saeed it is not just an interview. That raises the fact that he is bringing him to the mainstream.” The Congress has argued that Jaitley’s statement in the Rajya Sabha is not enough. Former Union Minister and senior Congress spokesperson Anand Sharma said that the government needs to answer whether it was “in the loop” about the meeting. “Such meetings cannot take place without the knowledge of the officials. Therefore a legitimate question arises, was the government of India in the loop? Has our foreign ministry received a report?” he asked in the Rajya Sabha. Journalist and columnist Aakar Patel said, I think that a journalist ought to meet who he wants to meet. But with being a journalist Vaidik is also very well respected in the BJP. That is why it has become such a huge issue." As the matter seems to be getting out of hand, Singh said this was a lesson to be learnt. “When you get an interview it must be on record. If it was on a tape then the line of reasoning would be known.” “What Vaidik asked Saeed would have made clear if he met him as a journalist or a emissary,” Singh added.