Ram
Puniyani
Those
resorting to communal politics have not only perfected their techniques of
polarizing the communities along religious lines, but have been constantly
resorting to new methods for dividing the society. On the backdrop of Muzzafar
nagar, where ‘Love Jihad’ propaganda was used to enhance the divisive agenda,
now in Aligarh an icon of matchless virtues, Raja Mahendra Pratap Singh is being
employed for the similar purposes (Nov 2014).
The
attempt by BJP and associates to hold the memorial function in his honor within
campus was successfully deflected by the Vice Chancellor of the Aligarh Muslim
University (AMU) University with the plan for a seminar befitting his
contribution to the freedom movement of this AMU alumnus. BJP dug up this icon
from pages of history and gauzing prevalent respect for him after the lapse of
decades after his death. The answer to why now at this particular juncture is
very revealing. Mahendra Pratap died on 29
April 1979, and now out of the blues BJP seems to have felt that his Jat, Hindu
identity can be pitched as a flag of their politics. Pratap was a freedom
fighter
extraordinary, a journalist and a writer. He was a humanist, believing in
International federation of nations transcending the national and religious
boundaries. He was a Marxist
who called for social reforms
and empowerment of Panchayats. He
was president of Indian Freedom Fighters' Association
He
was also the first one to form the provisional Indian Government in exile by
establishing
it in Kabul in 1915. Just to recall the Indian National Congress adopted the
goal of complete freedom for India much later in its 1929 session.
This Provisional Government was
called Hakumat-i-Moktar-i-Hind
After
independence he also participated in the electoral arena where he defeated Atal
Bihari Vajpayee in Mathura in the 1957 Lok Sabha election. His commitment to
being opposed to communal forces could not be more evident than this opposition
of his to the leader of Bhartiya Jansangh, Vajpayee. Ironically same person is
being lifted up as the icon, who opposed their politics. BJP leaders like Yogi Adityanath are claiming that
had Mahendra Pratap not donated the land the AMU would not have come up. This is
contrary to the facts. The predecessor of AMU, Mohammadan Anglo Oriental College
was formed in 1886, with a land bought from British cantonment (Nearly 74 Acres)
and much later Pratap had leased 3.04 acres of land, this is called Tikonia
ground and is used as a playground by the City High School of AMU in 1929.
He joined the Mohammedan Anglo Oriental
College in 1895, but could not complete his graduation. He left MAO College in
1905. MAO became Aligarh Muslim University in 1920, which regards Raja Mahendra
Pratap Singh as an alumnus. In 1977, AMU, under V-C Prof A M Khusro, felicitated
Mahendra Pratap at the centenary celebrations of MAO.
He
wasn’t born when MAO was established, and there is no record of any donation of
land from him. Mahendra Pratap’s father Raja Ghanshiam Singh of Mursan had got a
hostel room constructed, which continues to stand as Room Number 31 in Sir Syed
Hall (South).
BJP
demanded that Mahenra Pratap’s birthday should be celebrated as AMU celebrates
the birthday of Sir Syed, the founder of the University RSS Functionaries and
BJP leaders put pressure on the VC. VC pointed out that AMU cannot celebrate
birth day of every donor or alumnus, while recognizing their contribution to the
building up of the University. As such already AMU in recognition of Pratap’s
contribution to the University has put up his photo in University along with the
photo of Sir Syed.
On
November 17 (2014), BJP chief of UP Mr. Laxmikant Bajpai and
general secretary Swatantra Dev Singh visited Aligarh and directed their
district unit to celebrate the birth day of Mahendra Pratap’s within the MU
campus. The raja is a also Jat icon, In popular perception AMU is seen as a
Muslim institution. The Jat-Muslim conflict instigated by communal forces, which
erupted in the form of violence in Muzaffarnagar continues to affect in western
part of UP. The BJP through its machinations allegedly wants to restore the
glory of a Jat ‘king’. As such the idea is to appropriate one more of icons and
in the process if the state government puts curbs on the celebration, the BJP
can benefit by accusing the state Government of “Muslim appeasement”.
As the matters
stand VC, Gen. Shah’s suggestion of celebrating the birth anniversary of Raja
Mahendra Pratap by organizing a seminar on his contribution to freedom movement
of India is a welcome initiative. The situation seems to have been diffused for
the time being. BJP had planned a rally outside the gate of AMU, which would
have precipitated the unwarranted incidents.
This
whole episode has many lessons for the society. To begin with, the national
icons are being modulated to suit the interests of communal politics. Be it
Sardar patel, Swami Vivekanand, Mahatma Gandhi or in this case Raja Mahendra
Pratap, they are being presented in the light which suits the communal politics.
In case of Mahedra Pratap, who was a Marxist internationalist; is being
presented as a mere Jat leader. He was a person who opposed the politics in the
name of religion, as is evident by his electoral fight against BJP’s previous
avatar, Bhartiya Jan Sanghs’ Atal Bihari Vajpayee.
Secondly
BJP associates are manipulating people’s identity as primarily being religious
identity, Hindu or Muslim. In case of Muzzafarnagar, the Jats who were
instigated in the name of ‘love Jihad’ came to stand more for Hindu identity.
This identity is then made to stand opposed to the ‘other’ religious identity in
particular, the Muslim identity and sometimes Christian identity. Same game is
also being experimented in parts of Delhi, where Dalits are being made to pitch
against Muslims, in a way two deprived communities being made to fight for’
their’ religion’ on the pretext of some issues related to faith.
The
communal politics not only manipulates the identity of the people but also that
of the icons, as is clear in the case of Raja Mahendra Pratap. The third major
lesson for society to learn is that the search is on to find more and more
issues to pitch one religious community against the other to strengthen the
politics of a particular type. While the top leadership will talk of moratorium
on violence, the associates of the same leadership will stoke the processes
which will lead to the process of violence in due course.
A
great amount of restraint is needed to ensure that we learn the values of the
icons, e.g. the likes of Mahendra Pratap teach us the basic lessons of love and
amity, peace and universal humanism. To use the techniques of conflicting
religious identities is a gross violation of human morality, irrespective of the
religion in whose name it is done.
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