Electoral rhetoric throws up many a curious controversy.

Never the most responsible at the best of times, politicians let their tongues run riot when upcoming polls pollute the conversation. As a check of the complaints to the Election Commission of India, and the courts, would confirm.

Fortunately for them, but unfortunately for society at large, their vicious mud-slinging loses much sting once results of the election are declared: they are too thick-skinned to bother about what they said, or was said about them, but the level of the national debate is permanently impacted. And who would deny that even by lowly political standards the recent exchanges have been unmatched in nastiness, even stray attempts at being complimentary leave a bitter after-taste.

The brazen attempts to make political capital of military successes have hurled the armed forces into such filthy depths that even the opening of the much-awaited National War Memorial failed to elevate itself into a matter over which every citizen took apolitical pride.

Our fallen heroes deserved better for their gallant sacrifices ~ the term “martyrdom” has lost much sanctity through indiscriminate overuse. It is to be hoped that the gallantry medals announced twice a year will escape such political tarnish. Even the magical world of cinema has been afflicted.

Welcoming movie-star Sunny Deol into the BJP-fold, the defence minister turned the clock back all of 22 years to laud his film, Border, as evidence of the recent thrust on “nationalism”, ignoring the contention that the film paid scant regard to the facts of the classic air attack on armoured vehicles at Longewala (Rajasthan) in 1971.

Rather than check out realities with military experts, the defence minister opted to roll the Deol drum. “The moment we got to know that he is coming to the party, I can only relate to the film Border he had made, post- which the impact on the Indian audience of such a theme was really proven…. The feeling of nationalism and patriotism, when so beautifully evoked through a film, can really touch the core of Indian citizens.”

Deol has made over 100 movies, a couple of them award-wining, but Sitharaman declined to mention any other. Fortunately, playing the role of a villain has never been his forte, else the minister would have been hard-pressed to choose between “reel” and real life. The chief minister of Punjab was quick to point out that difference, even though he is not pitted against Deol in the scrap for the Lok Sabha seat from Gurdaspur.

Though his career in uniform was brief, the “graduate” from the Indian Military Academy has authored a few books on military history, played the lead role in organizing an acclaimed military seminar/ festival in Chandigarh. There is little “reel” about Capt. Amarinder Sigh’s credentials as a fauji. If only Mrs Sitharaman could occasionally rise above wearing a party feather on her ministerial hat…..