Jeff Bezos doesn't tell Washington Post journalists what to write, a senior editor at the publication said in a subtle attack targeted at BJP leader Vijay Chauthaiwale after the latter alleged that the newspaper's editorial policy is "highly biased".

Retweeting Jeff Bezos's "Dynamism. Energy. Democracy. #IndianCentury" post on Twitter earlier this week, Vijay Chauthaiwale, chief of the BJP's foreign affairs department, said, "Please tell this to your employees in Washington DC. Otherwise, your charm offensive is likely to be a waste of time and money".

On January 15, Jeff Bezos made a surprise appearance at an Amazon event in Delhi, where he said the company would invest $1 billion in India over the next five years.

Chauthaiwale's tweet was seen as a dig at the billionaire Jeff Bezos-owned Washington Post which has published several articles critical of the Modi government lately, including on the scrapping of Jammu and Kashmir's special status and the communication blackout in the Valley as well as the contentious Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA)and National Register of Citizens (NRC).

The remark by BJP leader Vijay Chauthaiwale quickly caught the publication's attention and received a clarification from a senior editor who said, "Independent journalism is not about charming governments".

Just to clarify: Jeff Bezos doesn't tell Washington Post journalists what to write. Independent journalism is not about charming governments. But there's no question the work of our correspondents and columnists fits within India's democratic traditions. https://t.co/TzrMZoCw69 — Eli Lopez (@elopezgross) January 17, 2020

"Just to clarify: Jeff Bezos doesn't tell Washington Post journalists what to write. Independent journalism is not about charming governments. But there's no question the work of our correspondents and columnists fits within India's democratic traditions," Eli Lopez, senior editor at the Washington Post replied on Twitter.

Vijay Chauthaiwale, in response to Eli Lopez, tweeted, "Read my tweet carefully. I never said Bezos should tell WaPo what to write. I just requested him to tell his employees the same things what he talked about India in Delhi. Isn’t it reasonable?"

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader on Friday had the slammed editorial policies of Jeff Bezos-owned Washington Post, even as his e-commerce firm Amazon (AMZN.O) announced plans to create a million jobs in the country by 2025.

Vijay Chauthaiwale said there was "a lot of problems" with the newspaper's coverage of India, but gave no examples.

"I am not opposing Amazon as a company, in fact, I am a regular customer ... Jeff Bezos should go home tell Washington Post what is his impression about India," Chauthaiwale had told Reuters.

"The Washington Post editorial policy is highly biased and agenda-driven."

In a statement to Reuters, The Washington Post said it "has covered India fairly and accurately, even when the government has imposed tight restrictions on the flow of information." The Post's Opinions department is independent of the news division and publishes different perspectives from within India and around the globe, the newspaper added.

Chauthaiwale has in the past criticised foreign media's reporting, including on the disputed Kashmir region claimed by both India and Pakistan, saying coverage has been biased against Modi.

Amazon did not respond to an email seeking comment on Chauthaiwale's remarks. In its statement announcing the job-creation plans, Bezos said "we're excited about what lies ahead."