Congress leader Jairam Ramesh criticised a cartoon published in the Hindu today, calling it “unjust and unacceptable”.
Ramesh, the head of the party’s media and communications wing, said he “usually” takes cartoons “in my stride” but described the Hindu’s cartoon as “obnoxious”.
I usually take cartoons on my party and colleagues in my stride and laugh. One that appeared in The Hindu today is unjust and unacceptable. It’s an obnoxious attempt at belittling Mallikarjun Kharge, one of the tallest leaders in India. I hope the venerable newspaper apologises.
— Jairam Ramesh (@Jairam_Ramesh) October 20, 2022
This is the cartoon in question. It appeared on page 11 of the newspaper’s Delhi edition and page 13 of its Chennai’s edition.
A day after Mallikarjun Kharge beat Shashi Tharoor to become president of the Congress party, the cartoon suggests he’s a puppet leader – a speculation that has been doing the rounds since Kharge’s candidacy was announced.
Ramesh called for the Hindu to apologise; the newspaper hasn’t made any comments so far.
But here at Newslaundry, we’re attempting to revive the fading tradition of political commentary through cartoons. Check out our weekly column, So Sketchy, where cartoonist Manjul offers his takes on the news of the week.
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