Na Jahanvi’s name has been dragged into a controversy that has dragged upon the Prime Minister’s first full term in office. This is due to the fact that the Prime Minister named his son in a press release shortly after his son-in-law was sworn in — he did so within hours of the inauguration. An important question that needs to be addressed is whether the Prime Minister’s son-in-law, a retired army officer, is entitled to all the perks of a political functionary.

This is being raised and raised when both this newspaper and this government have not done the bare minimum to clear up the matter. The Prime Minister has called the Jahanvi controversy a “smear campaign.” This kind of irresponsible rhetoric can only damage the country’s image, but the fact should be pointed out that the Prime Minister seems to be taking a knee to such nonsense.

The story itself is not the Prime Minister’s decision to name his son in-law, but rather it is the way it was dealt with, which the media will have to deal with when it comes to all the subsequent developments. The Prime Minister has, on the contrary, not only not addressed the controversy, he has also failed to explain himself. He wants to make himself a hero, but the question remains ‘Is it fair to name your son-in-law when you can do the very same thing to your grandfather?’

There are many theories about this debacle. Some suggest that it is the media, others that Mr. Modi’s close aide, Pravin Togadia, asked Mr. Jahanvi to name his son-in-law. Others who have spoken to journalists suggest that several decisions were taken in a rushed manner, without proper consultation between the two or enough time to allow both parties properly debate the issue. Whatever it is, it does not appear that the decision to name Jahanvi was done by the Prime Minister and it cannot be considered that way.

Before being appointed Prime Minister, Mr. Jahanvi served for years as the Union minister of state for finance and external affairs and held various ministerial portfolios. He held the same post for four years in the government of V.P. Singh and three years in the Gujarat government.

The Prime Minister’s actions on the issue have not been just on an individual level but on a social scale as well. Mr. Jahanvi’s son, Rajesh Kumar Jahanvi, made