As the campaigning for the two crucial by-elections in Goa reached its peak certain interesting developments happened. The Goa Archdiocese bulletin ‘Renovaçao’ came down heavily on the ruling party dubbing it as a fascist force and drawing parallels between the rise of Nazism in Germany in 1933 and in India in 2014 onwards. What is highlighted is that the freedom itself being at stake, and an atmosphere of fear created by misuse of state apparatus. The other development is the India today mood of the survey showing Yogi Aditiyanath, a Chief Minister for less than half a year whose administrative experience otherwise, is almost nil except for administering his math and running his organisation of vigilantes called the ‘Hindu Yuva Vahini’ – emerging as a serious alternative to Narendra Modi after his innings are over (we may also find him a ‘changed person’ if he gets power!).
The debate whether a church bulletin should take a stand it has taken at a time of a crucial by-election or whether the views are that of the writer or that of the higher echelons of the Goa Archdiocese will continue for quite some time. The clergy took a lead role in rooting out the corrupt in 2012. That resulted in the BJP getting power and acceptability even at a national level. Now the article in the church bulletin pushes issues of corruption and even secularism to periphery with the core values of democracy and freedom itself getting threatened. This is certainly a great view requiring an endorsement. When their bulletin allows a statement “let the corrupt rule, if they allow us to talk to it and to be politically free” shows that it is only attempting to redeem itself from the Himalayan blunder it had committed in 2012.
For the past three years we get homilies of ‘sabka sath sabka vikas’ but at the ground level we have repeated lynchings in the name of cow protection. Almost every week there is a case of cow vigilante activists taking law in their own hands, raiding trucks and ransacking kitchens and refrigerators, Mohammad Akhlaq and Junaid Khan are the symbols of these times. The control over the university spaces and throttling the NGOs show the signs of intolerance. Party leadership, Cabinet have all self emasculated. There is hardly any challenge to the PM hegemonic leadership. The principal opposition party is in a state of paralysis. With media on their side, they even sold demonetisation joke as a virtue. Even the public broadcasters like DD and AIR had the gumption to tell an elected chief minister to change the script of his Independence Day speech as it had references to ‘Great values of secularism keeping India together as a Nation’.
Harvesting the dividends of the social division appears to be the only intent in making rules like cattle slaughter and cattle markets. Polarisation may bring electoral victories in the short term. Can we learn from the damage to Syria and Iraq by such polarisation? We cannot have the type of nationalism like Pakistan built around a single religion, single language and a common enemy. Former chairman of the law commission Justice (Retd) A P Shah reminds us “if we restrict our understanding of nationalism, we ignore the multiplicity of views that exists. Nazism and fascism are ugly manifestation of nationalism”. He was referring to what he calls an enforced cultural nationalism that is perpetrated in the name of nationalism. What you eat, whom you love and what you think are sought to be effectively controlled in that attempt. The country’s debate on nation, nationhood and nationalism has seen new heights. Even the ex vice president’s parting lament over the state of minorities was not tolerated with the grace the situation warranted.
“If Goa falls, it will be turnaround in the entire course of current Indian politics” claims the article in Renovaçao. The Goa elections in 2012, gave a hope to BJP. It is states like Goa that provide the flavour of plurality to our country. Despite the Congress being discredited and its leadership seen as ineffectual, this year, Goa voted against that brand of cultural nationalism being foisted on us. The mandate was loud and clear. It was against divisive agenda. It is our misery that those who got elected as a result of that mandate against cultural nationalism failed to take it to its logical conclusion. Our tolerance of that manipulation shows that our values are sinking to a new low. It is irony that attack on democratic sensitibilities is sold to us as sacrifice and virtue. The manipulators are having the last laugh.
In our power driven democracy, coming to power at whatever cost, is approved as ‘smart political management’. That has deepened the crises of Indian democracy as Election Commissioner O P Rawat states “The winner can commit no sin; a defector crossing over to the ruling camp stands cleansed of all the guilt as also possible criminality. It is the creeping ‘new normal’ of political morality that should be the target for exemplary action by all political parties, politicians, media, civil society organisations, constitutional authorities and all those having faith in democratic polity for better election, a better tomorrow.”
All is not lost. We have a Sharad Yadav rejecting a Central cabinet post to preserve our composite culture and a Chotubai Vasava a six-time tribal MLA from Gujarat rejecting allurements in voting at Rajya Sabha elections. The Election Commission showed extraordinary courage in Gujarat RS elections making it a strong pillar of hope, even when the fourth pillar is crumbling under the stress of getting hounded. In such persons and institutions lie the silver lining. May their tribe increase.
(The writer is a practising lawyer and lecturer in law)
