Are the Stewards scared of Ferrari or Vettel?
If you look back the last three years of Vettels infringement of the F1 rules, there is supporting evidence that the stewards tend to be very lenient to the 4 time world champion. If you look back at Hamilton's infringements and the punishment meted out by the stewards over the same period, it become more obvious. But You may want to argue the black thing, so we looked at Verstapenn and Alonso over that period and the outcome still supported the view that Vettel relatively gets a lenient punishment.
But you have to factor in the fact that the most recent decisions of the steward's appear to be sensitive to the fact that the appropriate punishment would most likely bring about an early conclusion to the drivers championship. While this may not be a good argument for the French GP, one could see the reason why keeping Hamilton within touching distance to Vettel to keep the appearance of a title fight alive would be a more preferable outcome than following the letter of the rule.
You may argue that the F1 authorities are interfering too much in the outcome of the race. But l am sure you would not argue against a tough battle for the title. It should not be won easily. Also the undeserving should not win it because the F1 authorities fettle the experience of the tournament. But still it makes one wonder, are the stewards scared of a Ferrari backlash or a Vettel criticism? Or are they just simply dancing to the tunes of their employers?
