The Curious Case Of The Conspirative Mic

If a 15 seconds-long mic problem merits a suo moto case being registered, then the police risk an avalanche of complaints of similar and greater gravity, seeking their intervention, notes Shyam G Menon.

Can a microphone launching into a high-pitch whine inspire a police case?

It did in Kerala.

First, some context. On July 18, 2023 former chief minister of Kerala and senior Congress leader, Oommen Chandy passed away.

Diagnosed with cancer, he had been ailing. The end wasn't unexpected. What stunned was the outpouring of grief at his departure.

Thousands converged to pay their respects at every venue the body was kept for public viewing.

People thronged the roads and highways along which the body travelled from the state capital to its resting place at a church in Puthuppally, Kottayam.

In death, an image of Oommen Chandy in the time he was alive, began to emerge.

It was clear that this unassuming leader, who represented Puthuppally for more than five decades, had touched the lives of many.

A devout church-goer whose appeal transcended identity by religion and community, he was widely spoken of as having helped people; been there for them at crucial junctures in their life, listened to the public and understood their complaints.

His unassuming nature and lack of airs seemed to rub off not only on the aura that surrounded him after his demise, it was also a sharp contrast to the attitude of the current Left Democratic Front (LDF) state government, which is seen to value distinction by rank and ceremony.

Not to mention the LDF had muddied Oommen Chandy's public image after some from his office were alleged to have links with those accused in the so-called Solar Panel Scam in 2013.

It was a testing phase in Oommen Chandy's tenure as chief minister.

Subsequent investigations by the state police, done after the LDF came to power, unearthed no evidence to implicate the former chief minister. Still, the case was handed to central agencies.

The whole episode was later seen as a clean politician humiliated by the LDF.

The spectre of thousands lining up to pay respects to Oommen Chandy upon his death, was therefore partly seen as a public backlash to the LDF for what it did to the erstwhile chief minister.

It wasn't long before political observers and commentators searched their memory and that of others for a demise in Kerala politics grieved by so many.

Only former chief ministers E K Nayanar (of the CPI[M]) and K Karunakaran (of the Congress) found mention.

But they appeared a distant second; the scale of grieving witnessed for Oommen Chandy has no parallel, yet, as regards Kerala politicians.

On a lighter note, an observation doing the rounds as the motorcade bearing the Congress leader's body navigated its way slowly through roads lined with people (it was telecast live on TV), was that contemporary Malayali politicians must be rattled wondering if they would ever merit such a send-off by the public.

On July 24, the Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee held a meeting in Thiruvananthapuram to mark Oommen Chandy's passing and to remember him.

Among those invited was the current LDF chief minister, Pinarayi Vijayan.

At the meeting, as Vijayan moved towards the podium, he was greeted with sloganeering by some of the Congress supporters present.

When he commenced speaking, the microphone went into a high-pitch whine, much the same way mics do when caught in a feedback loop.

The next day, there was news of the police registering a suo moto case over the microphone problem that had interfered with the chief minister's speech for some 15 seconds.

Reports said, the electronic equipment involved was seized by the police and would be subjected to examination by experts.

By night, the relaxation of political divides to collectively condone a senior leader's passing, appeared ended; TV news showed Congress politicians holding forth on the Vijayan government's role in tarnishing Oommen Chandy's image.

July 26 afternoon, the media reported Vijayan advising the police not to proceed with the case.

It didn't stop the now liberated mic from acquiring a life of its own.

True to satire-loving Kerala, the mic in question was being referred to like a celebrity, in that evening's discussions on TV.

Two things stood out in the bizarre developments following the condolence meeting of July 24.

First, most of us beset with such a mic problem, wait for the high-pitch whine to die down and then continue talking.

Or we wait for the technician to do his bit, correcting the issue.

Politicians who are veterans of public speaking and misbehaviour by mics should be even more comfortable with technical setbacks.

In the specific instance from July 24, media reports said the problem was immediately rectified. Vijayan too resumed speaking after the brief glitch.

However, if a 15 seconds-long mic problem merits a suo moto case being registered, then the police risk an avalanche of complaints of similar and greater gravity, seeking their intervention.

Second, it appears the Congress is in no mood to let go of Oommen Chandy's victimisation in the Solar Panel Scam.

Both the refusal and the anger are easily understood, particularly given the public turnout witnessed earlier.

One may have liked to ask Oommen Chandy what he makes of all this.

Sadly, he is no more.

Shyam G Menon is a freelance journalist based in Mumbai.

Feature Presentation: Aslam Hunani/Rediff.com