One has to remember the wisdom of a great moviegoer who claimed that it is the B-grade movie one always remembers. There was already a sense of anticipation and a feeling of expectation that she had to perform — whether as an actor or as a minister was irrelevant. The BJP came out as replete with tribal stereotype. It was a stunning performance. Her choice of dress was immaculate. Ms Irani claimed that she rang up the minister concerned Irani’s piece was a performance, a comeback cameo that neither the Congress nor the Communist Party of India (Marxist) could match or anticipate.Ms Irani then picked up a pamphlet and read out an indictment of Durga Puja: “. Then her script moved an octave higher and she shifted gears to make a counter charge. Universities were up in arms and syllabi had become a source of angst. Her replies to issues of education did not gel and seemed almost illiterate next to comments of academics like Amartya Sen and Romila Thapar.
Ms Irani had to convey hurt, defiance, anger, seethe at the misunderstanding around her and, yet, convey that China deck oven she was back in control. Ms Irani hinted again that neither the security nor the academic committee were the BJP’s academic appointees. Shaking and controlling events seemed to be more important than people’s emotions. She then claimed that political activists created a cordon around Rohith, ensuring that no doctor could examine or revive him. She read out letter after letter written by politicians from other parties. As a cameo it was impressive but as an articulation of the HRD minister explaining unrest, Ms Irani seemed irrelevant. Her sari added both colour and gravitas.Smriti Irani, the human resources development minister, had been losing ground in the last few months. The inquiry, she repeatedly emphasised, was not instigated by the BJP’s allegedly anti-dalit stand but by Congress politicians. Ms Irani looked cornered, amateurish, somehow playing a role that did not quite suit her. Media wanted a performance and it got one. Education was one turf where the Bharatiya Janata Party was getting a battering from its critics. Rohith’s mother, listening to the speech, struck back calling Ms Irani a liar
