Self-appointed Sardar

Across the river Indus, parents used to put their children to sleep by mentioning Chingiz Khan thank God, he was not a Muslim. That was in...

Across the river Indus, parents used to put their children to sleep by mentioning Chingiz Khan thank God, he was not a Muslim. That was in the early 13th century. Now, of course, parents in Gujarat invoke the little Chingiz Khans in their midst to put their babies to sleep.

Even at the best of times Narendra Modi should have been incarcerated for his administrative lapses during the communal holocaust in Gujarat. Sadly, he leads an election campaign with his characteristic arrogance, and hides the rankest and narrowest communalism under the cover of Gujarat8217;s pride. Sadly, too, nobody, except the electorate, is positioned to tame the Chhota Sardar or call his bluff. Who knows what the subalterns have in mind, but there is no denying that large segments of the educated Gujarati middle classes, who have played into his hands in the name of guarding 8220;Hindu interests8221;, continue to nurse imaginary fears against their fellow Gujarati Muslims. Their idea of breaking the communal impasse is a complete submission of the minorities to their views. Only a few heed Gandhiji8217;s admonitions, or regard secularism as their pet project. This is Gujarat8217;s supreme tragedy.

8220;Publicly I was denounced,8221; complained Motilal Nehru, 8220;as an anti-Hindu and pro-Mohammedan but privately almost every individual voter was told that I was a beef-eater in league with the Muslims to legalise cow-slaughter in public places at all times.8221; This happened during the election campaign in 1926. So, you see, history repeats itself. Today, Narendra Modi, Ashok Singhal and Praveen Togadia, the quintessential jehadis, have yet again raised the war cry against Muslims, democracy and secularism. Besides pressing the tragic Godhra episode into service to polarise religious sentiments, they have put together Gaurav Yatras to strike awe and terror in the hearts of a beleaguered minority. Their aim is not to restore Gujarat8217;s pride, but to raise the communal temper of the country.

The December 12 election in Gujarat may or may not bring Modi 038; Co. back to Gandhinagar, but there can be no doubt that the campaign itself has changed the grammar and vocabulary of Indian politics. Despite the sober and secularised tone introduced by Sonia Gandhi, for which the nation at large is beholden to her, Modi has succeeded in accentuating the Hindu-Muslim divide. Moreover, he has forefronted a discourse which, if repeated elsewhere, will strike at the very root of national unity. Herein lies the danger, not just for Gujarat8217;s future but for the country as a whole.

Yet, George Fernandes, Sharad Yadav, the self-proclaimed champions of secularism, and Arun Shourie, the enfant terrible of English journalism, have not spoken a word against these ominous trends. Such is their strong instinct of self-preservation, that they are not moved by the death of infants. They are, so it appears, untouched by the brutalities committed by the rioters. One wishes them well in office, but let them know that the verdict of history will go against them. Some may even decide to build a memorial to mourn not the dead in Gujarat, but to mark the demise of basic, humanistic values in the 8220;secular8221; leaders of the NDA government.

The sphinx-like silence of some, coupled with the aggressive campaign of others, illustrates how the Sangh Parivar and its 8220;secular8221; allies are bent on polarising state and society in Gujarat. If they had the country8217;s interest in mind, they would have dumped the man, who has exposed their pretensions and tarnished the country8217;s fair image overseas. Instead, the Chhota Sardar is lionised.

8220;Fighting his case is my responsibility,8221; says the PM in Vadodara. The pogrom against the Muslims, brutal and callous in the extreme, is referred to as 8220;some unfortunate incidents8221;. If party spokesman Arun Jaitley has his way, he may well recommend to the president of the Republic to confer upon Modi the highest state honour even before the outcome of the elections on December 12.

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Never before in free India8217;s history has an individual been so widely acclaimed by his partymen for his alleged crimes against humanity! Never before has the country8217;s prime minister shown such insensitivity to the victims of a well-organised pogrom!

Communalism has been rampant in the Congress; indeed, many a Congressman is a communalist under his national cloak. Yet, contrast Vajpayee8217;s responses with that of the first prime minister. For one, Nehru constantly warned chief ministers that communalism had invaded the minds and hearts of those who had been the pillars of the Congress in the past. He told Rajendra Prasad, the president, not to associate himself with the rebuilding of the Somnath temple, and ignored his views on the Hindu Code Bill. He developed strong differences with those Congressmen who espoused communal causes.

The Congress did not represent the voice of the party he knew but something he had opposed for the greater part of his life. 8220;All of us,8221; he stated, 8220;seem to be getting infected with the RSS mentality. This is a curious finale to our careers.8221;

When Lord Rama8217;s idols were installed in the Babri Masjid, Nehru chided the district magistrate for disobeying government orders. 8220;I think it is a great pity,8221; he told a colleague, 8220;that this man, Nayar, was not tried publicly as he is altogether a bad hat.8221; Patel, the home minister, conceded that the Ayodhya controversy had been raised at a most inopportune time. I8217;m sure both Nehru and Patel would have regarded Modi as a liability rather than an asset, and spurned his brazenly conducted politics of violence and intimidation.

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If Vajpayee had done the same, he would have raised his personal stature and brought dignity to his office.

8220;I have carried on in the past,8221; Nehru once wrote, 8220;and I shall carry on in the future thinking more of the principles I cherish than of the results that may follow from my actions. Without that basis of thought and action, I would become a straw upon the waters, blown about hither and thither, without rudder or compass.8221; I recommend these lines to Vajpayee for self-reflection.

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