When PM asked Jaishankar: Jaage ho?

September 23, 2022 11:52

External Affairs minister S Jaishankar in New York praised the leadership skills of Prime Minister Narendra Modi while recalling the attack on the Mazar-e-Sharif in Afghanistan near the Indian consulate and while India was coordinating evacuations from the country.

Recalling the situation in Afghanistan in the year 2016, Jaishankar attending a book discussion event in New York on Thursday said: "It was past midnight, and our consulate in Mazar-e-Sharif, Afghanistan, was under attack. And we were using phones, trying to figure out what happened."

"All of this was happening and you're juggling phones, trying to keep everybody updated. And then, my phone rang. When the prime minister calls, there is no caller ID. His first question was -Jaage ho? (Are you awake?)," Jaishankar said.

The External Affairs minister was speaking at an event to discuss the book Modi@20: Dreams Meet Delivery. "Jaage ho?...achaa tv dekh rahe ho...toh kya ho raha h waha (what's happening there?)," Modi asked Jaishankar over the call, responding to which the EAM responded and informed the PM that help was on its way.

Jaishankar said during the address citing the phone call with Prime Minister. "I told him that it might take a couple of more hours and that I would call up at his office. To this, he responded - 'Mujhe phone kar dena' (Call me please)," Jaishankar said.

Praising the leadership skills of PM Modi the EAM said, "To handle the consequences of very big decisions, that is a singular quality."

The external affairs minister also recalled his first meeting with the prime minister. "I frankly liked Mr Modi before I met Mr Modi. I am on some levels, as many would complain, a micromanager. I can be quiet a pain. But the level of preparation he had done was commendable," Jaishankar said. The EAM also pointed out that PM Modi "starts his day at 7:30 am... and carries on, and does not drop, while others might." -- ANI

« Back to LIVE

TOP STORIES

Attack on High Commission in London: NIA makes first arrest

NIA investigations in the case so far have revealed that the incidents in London on March 19 and 22 last year were part of a larger conspiracy to unleash vicious attacks on the Indian missions and its officials.

Why Gavaskar Slammed Kohli...

'In the middle, he just seemed to have lost touch...So at the end of the day, when he gets out...when you are facing the strike in the first ball of the innings and you get out in the 14th or the 15th over, you have got a strike rate of...

'Confidence comes from winning, not talking': Faf hails team effort

Faf du Plessis was a relieved man after his team snapped a six-game losing streak with a 35-run win over Sunrisers Hyderabad

CM in jail: Delhi L-G postpones mayoral polls

Elections to the posts of mayor and deputy mayor of the Municipal Corporation of Delhi that were slated for April 26 were postponed on Thursday, with Lt Governor V K Saxena citing 'unprecedented' circumstances where the chief minister is...

Phase II: Touch And Go Seats

Election Commission data shows 15.88 crore (158.8 million) voters are eligible to exercise their franchise in the second phase on Friday.