With no irony whatsoever, Modi allegedly began to tell Trump about the historical significance of Gandhi's peaceful teachings on nonviolence while—at exactly the same time outside in the streets of New Delhi—a violent bloody anti-Muslim pogrom massacre was literally taking place. So while Trump and Modi were inside enjoying their right-wing bromance, global audiences worldwide watched in horror as TV cameras captured dramatic footage of baton-wielding New Delhi police officers and vigilante Hindu mobs targeting Muslims in India's capital city, leaving at least forty-seven people murdered on the streets of New Delhi.

QUESTION: The juxtaposition of Modi's Gandhi discourse with simultaneous pogrom violence raises questions about how political rhetoric is deployed as a cover for state-sanctioned violence.

XREF: Connects to the broader irony of right-wing leaders invoking Gandhi's nonviolence while condoning communal violence. Also echoes patterns from India's 2002 Gujarat riots under Modi's watch.

Arsalan Iftikhar, Fear of a Muslim Planet_ Gl…, loc. 191