Ram Puniyani
Currently (August 2013) Narendra Modi is trying to dominate the
media, print social and TV through his carefully constructed propaganda
machinery and his potential of being nominated as the BJP’s Prime Ministerial
candidate by RSS-BJP. Modi has openly used the words like puppies dying under
the car wheel, while referring to the victims of Gujarat carnage of 2002. He
has also asserted that he is a ‘Hindu nationalist’. While most of the older
allies of NDA, are deserting NDA, RSS-BJP hope that he will be able to win the
2014 elections due to his image of a non corrupt, efficient administrator who
has taken Gujarat to the heights of development. In social media and other
platforms the polarized section of Hindus and the section of middle class are
very appreciative of Modi and are creating a delusion of his becoming the next
prime minister.
All this is mostly a pipe dream. One knows that Modi is totally
disliked by the victims of communal violence, most sections of religious
minorities Those who have gone deeper to
the issue of Gujarat development model point out that it is more of a
propaganda than reality. We still need to understand as to why ‘Modi phenomenon’
has arisen on the Indian scenario and the dangers of ignoring the politics
represented by Modi as such. Even though he may not be able to be the PM after
2014 we need to realize that politics represented by Modi and his ilk is the
politics of ‘Communal Fascism’, which at surface looks to be just against
minorities, but as a matter of fact, aims to abolish democracy after usurping
power through democratic means. Its agenda is to do away with the human rights
of the dalits, Adivasis, workers and women in Indian context.
RSS-BJP: Rise in 1980s
Modi is a trained Pracharak (propagator) of RSS, deeply soaked
in the ideology of Hindu nationalism, working for the agenda of Hindu nation.
In the decade of 1980 multiple factors at global and local level led to the
rise of conservative middle classes, the petty industrialists, the rich
farmers, the affluent professionals, who are always for the politics of status
quo. During this time the global changes, the creeping globalization was on and
the attacks on working class movement were stepped up. RSS-VHP during this
phase started promoting the religiosity all round. Using the Shah Bano judgment
as the pretext, RSS launched the tirade against secular values by putting
forward the word ‘Pseudo secularism’ and phrases like appeasement of
minorities.
In this backdrop Advani started his Rath Yatra for Ram Temple.
In the country where the dire need of basic amenities for life and the need for
protection of the human rights of weaker sections of society are paramount, the
RSS combine deliberately brought forward the issues related to identity of a
section of Hindus. At the same time their propaganda targeted the religious
minorities, a mix of distorted version of history, and presenting the victims
as culprits. The rath yatra of Advani created the atmosphere of ‘Hate towards minorities’
and this led to series of acts of violence.
The major outcome of this campaign for Ram Temple was that the
issues related to human rights and the bread, butter, shelter and employment issues
got relegated to the background and social-political scene started revolving
around the identity issues. As a part of the communal politics unleashed by RSS
combine, the anti Christian violence in Adivasis areas also got stepped up. In
these areas the corporate giants want to have a free hand and have been able to
encroach the lands of Adivasis.
RSS Combine: Epitome
of Communalism
RSS began in India during the freedom movement as an
organization opposed to the freedom movement, opposed to the concept of Indian
Nationalism and harping on the glory of ancient Hindu kings, era of pastoral
Aryans and ancient Hindu scriptures. RSS began as a response to the struggle of
dalits for their land rights and the rising opposition to the values of Brahminism
prevalent in the society. The non Brahman movement was inspired by Jotiba Phule
and Dr. Ambedkar. As the average people started coming up in the society,
started participating in the freedom movement, the elite-upper castes sections felt
threatened and they came together to form Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS).
This organization began by holding shakhas, and developed a training module
according to which this (India) is a Hindu nation from times immemorial. The
freedom movement’s values of incorporating people of all the religions in the
movement were not acceptable to them. They trained the young boys into swayamsevaks,
who took oath to work for Hindu nation. They also kept totally aloof from
freedom movement. RSS was founded by the Chittapvan Brahmins and is an
exclusively male organization.
RSS went on to form various subordinate organizations like
Rashtra Sevika Samiti (for women). In this name the word swayam is missing as RSS being a male dominated patriarchal
organization, it believes in the inherent subjugation of women as secondary
beings. Later RSS went on to form Akhil Bhartiya Vidhyarthi Parishad, (Student
wing), and then in collaboration with Hindu Mahasabha it formed Bhartiya
Jansangh, the previous avatar of the present BJP, Vishwa Hindu Parishad (for
bringing together different Hindu sects under the control of RSS) Vanvasi
Kalyan Ahsram (to work amongst Adivasis to Hidutvise them), Bajrang Dal as its
foot soldiers (for unleashing street violence against religious minorities) and
many other organizations like Durga Vahini etc.
On similar lines it began many an institutions to propagate its
views (weeklies like Panchjanya and Organizer), started Sarswati Shishu Mandirs
and Ekal Schools for Adivasi children. Its ideological spread was achieved
through spread of brahminical norms through various channels. Infiltration of
its RSS swayamsevaks into the state apparatus, police, military, bureaucracy is
also very deep.
The ideological
indoctrination
Through its shakhas it started spreading the hate for
minorities, opposition to the values of secularism and Indian Constitution.
This relentless opposition went on through many other channels also. It also
made inroads to the IT professionals by the web meetings called IT milans
(Gathering). The social media also was and has been used by RSS combine in a
very effective way. To add to all these many a Godmen of the likes of Pandurang
Shastri Athwaley, Asaram Bapu, Baba Ramdev, Sri Sri Ravishnkar etc. started
propagating the social concepts of RSS, the values of Hindu Nation through
their subtle and direct activities. The result has been that the social scene
has come to be dominated by the conservative thinking. Meanwhile RSS also
popularized the word, Hidnutva. This word Hindutva stands for the politics
based on Brahimincal values of caste and gender hierarchy. Mistakenly the
politics of Hindutva is supposed to be ‘a way of life’ by many.
Throughout the decades of 1960 and 1970 there were sporadic
episodes of violence. This led to polarization of the religious communities and
provided the ground for rise of electoral strength of communal party. In the
decade of 1980s, with the Ram Temple campaign picking up, the intensity of violence
also started going up. Major episodes of violence took place in various cities
of North India. All this was dwarfed by the communal violence Post Babri
demolition. The violence in cities like Mumbai, Bhopal and Surat was too
horrific for words. The violence unleashed in Gujarat on the pretext of Godhra
train burning shamed the nation as a whole, beyond all previous acts of
violence.
Modi: Gujarat Violence
and After
The post Godhra violence was a sample of the way state can
actively promote violence. So far in the communal violence in India, the
police, the state had been by and large an onlooker, mostly police siding with
rioters. In Gujarat the equation was worsened much further with state, led by
Modi actively promoting violence. Though it is claimed that Special Investigation
team has given the clean chit to Modi, the fact is that based on the same
report, the Supreme Court appointed Amicus Curie Raju Ramchandran feels the
report has enough evidence to prosecute Modi for his role in 2002 violence. After
the violence the state of Gujarat totally washed its hands off the responsibility
to rehabilitate the violence victims. The process of marginalization of religious
minorities went quite far. A large section has been living in ghettoes in Ahmadabad
itself, while their civic and political rights have been trampled and they are
living like second class citizens. There is an intense propaganda that Gujarat
is most developing state, the fact is that Gujarat was already amongst the more
developed states, the claims of huge investments through Vibrant Gujarat
summits have little substance in them, promises have been more than the
actualizations. The real indices of social development are lagging behind. The
rate of employment generation is very low, Gujarat is low on the per capita
spending, the Hemoglobin level of pregnant women is on the lower side and sex
ratio has also fallen during last one and a half decade.
Hindutva: electoral
Strategy
RSS combine has been entering into the electoral arena by and
by. While in 1984 elections when it was giving the slogan of Gandhian
socialism, it had only two MPs in Lok Sabha. In 1996, it went on to more than
150 MPs and it emerged as the largest single party. That time no other electoral
party was willing to ally with it. The BJP government fell. After going through
couple of ‘third-front’ experiments, BJP managed to cobble up the coalition,
National Democratic Alliance. For this it had to give up the core issues of Ram
Temple, abolition of Article 370 in Kashmir and Uniform Civil Code. This
strategy worked and BJP led NDA ruled for nearly six years. During this time it
communalized the text books and recruited RSS volunteers in to various government
schemes and supported many NGOs with RSS agenda and RSS got a big boost in the
political arena and its dominance was painfully perceptible in different walks
of life.
The Hindutva combine knows that it was so far not able to come
to power on its own. Now it is hoping that it will go with aggressive Hindutva
agenda and by coming to power on its own it will bring in Hindu Rashtra.
Agenda of Hindu
Rashtra- Hindutva Politics
Modi is the aggressive form of Hindutva agenda. He has openly
started saying that they believe in Hindu nationalism. This is a subtle and
open hint at the communal fascism which RSS combine, of which Modi is the major
leader, wants to bring in. The major support base for RSS combine, more so with
Modi at the helm is the corporate sector on one hand and the middle level corporate
employees, the Information Technology-MBA groups on the other. Modi has
demonstrated in Gujarat that he can open all the state coffers for the
industrialists, land, loans and necessary paraphernalia. This has impressed the
corporate sector and they are pitching for him in a large way. The corporate
media has uncritically propagated his claims about development. The social
welfare schemes have been kept in abeyance, due to which the poorer sections
are suffering. As for as minorities are concerned all the central schemes
related to Sachar Committee are not being implemented, the scholarship funds
for the Muslim students is being returned back year after year. Modi in this
sense is ruthless as for as schemes related to religious minorities are
concerned.
He is the choice of corporate, middle classes, the traders and
the RSS support base. Each of these has their own understanding of Modi and he
fits in to the bill of these all. Corporates think he will give them a free
hand to plunder, the middle classes know Modi is the best guarantee against
social change for betterment of the deprived sections and religious minorities.
The RSS, discarded Advani on two grounds, one that he made that statement about
Jinnah being secular and other that he is on the wrong side of the age. RSS,
the real controller of BJP and other affiliated organizations see in Modi a
ruthless swayamsevak out to bring in Hindu Rashtra.
Way Ahead
While Modi and RSS agenda is being projected and Modi’s rise is
being anticipated it is clear to most that Modi’s coming into the top of power
ladder will instill an autocrat who will soon follow the path of Hitler. Our
country is rich of diversity with varying interest groups, who know Modi-RSS
are going to impose Hindu Rashtra a synonym for communal fascist state. This
diversity of the country and the realization of this sort amongst large
sections of Indian voters should wake up to this danger to our democracy and
ensure their defeat in the electoral area. While RSS combine and corporates
will try their best to prop him up, the large section of Indian electorate should
not be taken in by such propaganda, as Modi’s reality is too well known to most
by now. Though Modi is trying to project as if he is changing his profile and
becoming liberal, one knows that a leopard cannot change its spots. And that is
the reason as to why Modi’s tricks on the electoral arena should be made to fail
in the coming elections.
The responsibility of ensuring that mishap of Modi’s victory does
not take place will also rest on the progressive sections of society, the
sections who are getting affected by the agenda of communal politics and the religious
minorities who have experienced the Modi’s deeds of commission and omission.
The realization of this sort will be in the center stage of the progressive
sections of society and it is crystal clear that they have to come up to fulfill
this historic responsibility to understand the Modi phenomenon and to make the
large sections of population aware about this truth. This truth they are trying
to mask by the propaganda unleashed by Modi and his minions. Some facts are
known and others will have to be made known to the struggling masses, which is the
need of the hour for democratic movement in the country. While we have to
intensify the struggle for human rights of all, we may have some differences,
we also have to come together on this common goal of saving democracy which is
being attacked by the communal fascist forces as represented by Modi and those
who are prostrating in front of him.
Some people, ideologues try to argue that more violence has
taken place in non BJP ruled party, that other parties are not truly secular.
What we have to remember is that BJP as a party cannot and should not be
compared with any other party, as BJP is not just and electoral party, it is
basically the electoral wing of RSS, whose agenda is opposed to the agenda of
secular democratic India, the dream of Indian nationalism, the dream of those
who contributed to the ‘Making of the Nation-India’, the diverse streams
represented by Gandhi, Bhagat Singh and Ambedkar!
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