Opinion Gau Raksha: Narendra Modi has found a voice, and not without reason
PM Modi's remarks came after months of dithering and denial on such attacks by the Central and respective state governments.
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Modi said, “I would like to tell these people that if you have any problem, if you have to attack, attack me. Stop attacking my Dalit brethren.”
Prime Minister Narendra Modi finally expressed his “unbearable pain” over the continued attacks on Dalits in the name of cow protection. After Saturday’s townhall meeting where he called cow vigilante groups as anti-social elements “who were running shops in the name of cow protection” and tweets reiterating what he said, the PM followed it up more forcefully on Sunday. Calling on people to be aware of fake gau rakshaks, Modi said, “I would like to tell these people that if you have any problem, if you have to attack, attack me. Stop attacking my Dalit brethren. If you have to shoot, shoot me, but not my Dalit brothers. This game should stop.”
PM Modi’s remarks came after months of dithering and denial on such attacks by the central and respective state governments. Many believed the PM will maintain silence like he did after the killing of Mohammed Akhlaq in Dadri in September 2015. A mob had killed Akhlaq accusing him of eating beef. With not a word from the PM for weeks, President Pranab Mukherjee reminded the country of its core belief and its tolerance. Facing criticism, the PM only endorsed what the president had said.
This time, however, the flogging of a Dalit family in Gujarat’s Una district for skinning cattle was the flashpoint. The incident made national and international headlines and brought a bad press for the BJP as most of these self-appointed vigilante groups allegedly belonged to the larger saffron parivar. Seen to be failing to act against these gau rakshaks, chief minister Anandiben Patel resigned from her post. Though internal party dynamics did play a role in her resignation, massive street protests after the Una flogging brought out the fury of the Dalit community against the state government, thereby forcing her to quit.
This growing fissure had put BJP on the backfoot. Gujarat and Uttar Pradesh, with sizeable Dalit populations, are going to polls next year. And the party cannot risk losing support of this community. As part of its outreach to Dalits ahead of the UP Assembly elections in 2017, BJP president Amit Shah had recently planned a rally in Agra. But he decided to stay away, may be fearing protests. Though the rally did take place, there was abysmally low attendance. Perhaps this was the pointer for the BJP which is trying to bring the Dalit votes under its fold in the crucial assembly elections.
Prime Minister Modi’s anger and outburst against the alleged cow protection groups must be seen in this context. Since most of these attacks took place in the states where the BJP or its alliance partners rule, Opposition parties alluded his continued silence to the ruling “party’s complicity” in these incidents.
Sensing the anger against these despicable attacks, the BJP desperately needed the PM to speak and to send out a clear signal to these lawless groups. Modi forcefully emphasised that majority of these attackers were anti-social elements. “If you have to attack, attack me…. ” are words that reassure safety and security of a community in the lowest strata of the society. What remains to be seen though is how much of it is translated on the ground. And his remarks have thrown up a question as well: Had Modi spoken with this zeal earlier, many lives may have been saved from these vigilante groups.
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