Unconnected: Several Modi ministers stay logged out of Facebook and Twitter

Even four months after prime minister Narendra Modi advised his ministerial colleagues to remain active on social media, the suggestion has not cut much ice as several ministers neither maintain a Facebook page nor a Twitter handle. Several among those who are on Facebook and Twitter, seldom bother to update their profile or post on their pages.

After Millennium Post conducted a screening of Facebook accounts and pages of NDA ministers, it has come to the light that some ministers of cabinet rank have not even updated their profiles on their respective accounts or pages. Minister of minority affairs Najma Heptulla has not visited her Facebook account since 30 May, a day after the prime minister had asked his ministers to be active on the social media. Minister of consumer affairs Ram Vilas Paswan, who is very active on Twitter handle, has not yet mentioned anything about becoming a MP and being a minister of cabinet rank on any of his two Facebook accounts and page. Paswan’s last post is dated 27 September.

Kalraj Mishra mentions himself as cabinet minister forgets to mention the department on his social media account. 

The account of heavy industries and public enterprises minister Anant Geete’s has not been updated since 13 June. HRD minister Smriti Irani, who is yet to interact with media in a freewheeling manner, has also not updated her Facebook account since 12 September, a day after Irani spelled out achievement of her ministry in the last 100 days.

Union health minister Harsh Vardhan, is very active in addressing as many programmes as possible in a day, has also not updated his Facebook account as he introduces himself as WHO adviser rather a cabinet minister.

Among the minister of state with independent changes, VK Singh, who is heading the ministry for development of Northeast region, has not mentioned about his present role. In the category of state ministers, some of them don’t even have a Facebook or Twitter handle. Those who refrain from being on microblogging site or social media are Radhakrishan P (MoS of MSME), Sanjeev Kumar Baliyan (MoS of agriculture), Mansukhbhai Dhanjibhai Vasava (MoS for tribal affairs), Raosaheb Dadarao Danve (MoS for consumer affairs).