New Delhi, Jan 24 (IANS) In a major embarrassment, a government advertisement against female foeticide carried a former Pakistan Air Force chief's photo along with those of Indian icons, prompting an apology from the Prime Minister's Office and a probe into the gaffe.
The advertisement Sunday caused surprise as TV channels played it up. Minister for Women and Child Development Krishna Tirath went on the defensive, saying the "message" was more important than the image.
The offending advertisement, issued by a government agency, is believed to have been cleared at the "highest level", implying either the minister herself or her top officials.
The half-page advertisement published in a national daily on the occasion of National Girl Child Day carried a photograph of former Pakistan Air Chief Marshal Tanvir Ahmed, who was air chief 2006-2009, along with cricketing icons Kapil Dev and Virender Sehwag and sarod maestro Amjad Ali Khan.
The ad also has the pictures of the ruling United Progressive Alliance chair Sonia Gandhi, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Tirath herself.
It was issued for the women and child development ministry by the government's Directorate of Advertising and Visual Publicity (DAVP).
The Prime Minister's Office was quick to regret the incident and ordered an internal inquiry into the lapse.
"The Prime Minister's Office has noted with regret the inclusion of a foreign national's photograph in a government of India advertisement," the media adviser to the prime minister said in a statement.
"While an internal enquiry has been instituted, the PMO apologises to the public for this lapse," he added.
A defiant Tirath, however, refused to accept the blame for the goof-up.
The "message is more important than the image. The photograph is symbolic. The girl child should be protected, that is more important," Tirath told reporters.
"The real motive behind this advertisement is to encourage females to become mothers and stop female foeticide."
"An inquiry is being ordered into the matter. We are convening a meeting," an unfazed minister said.
It is not clear who was at fault and efforts are on to fix responsibility on those entrusted with designing the advertisement and those in the government who approved it.
According to knowledgeable sources, the designing of the advertisement was outsourced to a creative agency attached to a leading media house. The advertisement was cleared by the minister herself, the sources said.
When asked whether the advertisement was approved by the minister for women and child development, all a ministry official said to IANS was: "According to the media advertisement policy, it is approved at the highest levels. A joint secretary at least must have approved the ad. The inquiry is on."
A DAVP official, however, denied any role of his organisation in the approval of the ad. "The ad was given to us on Saturday, a government holiday, and we released it as it was already approved by the ministry," the official told IANS, pleading that he not be identified as he was not authorised to speak to the media.
The opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) was quick to seize the opportunity to attack the government.
"It is not a minor mistake. This is a major mistake. The government should take appropriate action," said senior BJP leader Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi.
Naqvi's colleague Rajiv Pratap Rudy termed it a "blunder". "How can the ministry work in such a manner?" he asked.
But the ruling Congress predictably tried to soft-pedal the issue. "The media is creating unnecessary hype," Congress spokesperson Abhishek Manu Singhvi said, adding that an inquiry was already on.