(Image via Twitter)
Modi’s trip to China got off to a poor start after his opening address to a welcoming committee at the Beijing international airport was interrupted by a teleprompter malfunction.
“PM Modi had barely said ‘I thank my dear friend Ex Aii Xinping…’ when suddenly sparks began to fly from the teleprompter and the screen went blank. For a few seconds, we did not what to do. PM Modi, however, showed enormous presence of mind and smoothly turned his opening speech into a ‘Make in India’ address, exhorting his Chinese counterparts to come down to India and make high quality affordable teleprompters,” said MEA spokesperson, Vikas Swarup.
The incident has raised a few eyebrows among China watchers, especially as it comes after the frosty reception extended to PM Modi by the Chinese media. Indian officials, however, rule out foul play by the Chinese to embarrass the Indian PM. “Nah, we gotta give them the benefit of the doubt. It’s a Chinese product after all,” said Vikas Swarup. “Even the gift Premier Jinping gave PM Modi has stopped working already.”
Modi himself seemed unperturbed by the interruption, and interacted with Chinese officials in his usual exuberant manner. Leading Indo-China analyst Chingchang Varma, however, begs to differ. “He’s clearly ticked off,” he said. “Unlike his trips to other countries, PM Modi did not pull the ears of the little Chinese girl who handed him the bouquet at the airport.”
(With inputs from Ashwin Kumar)