Modi Wave Turns Pro-establishment Intellectuals Nervous
If the high voter turnout in the third and substantial phase of 2014 Lok Sabha elections is anything to go by, it reveals the effect of Sri Narendra Modi’s appeal to different sections of society in terms of mobilizing them to vote for change. Ironically, however, the pro-Modi wave has not gone down well with some sections of Delhi-based intelligentsia. Reflective of this, separate statements were issued last week by groups of left-leaning academicians and so-called eminent citizens warning the people of India that the possibility of Narendra Modi becoming prime minister constitutes ‘a palpable threat to the future of our secular democracy.’ As part of orchestrated campaign against the charismatic Modi, such doomsday narrative smacks of the pro-establishment, status quoist bias and hence, only few share their cynicism.
There is no denying the fact that the BJP’s Prime Ministerial candidate is the popular choice among the thoroughly disillusioned Indians cutting across communities and regions. Contrary to what these intellectuals claim, Modi, unlike the AAP architect, is not the product of the electronic media, nor is his popularity fuelled by the corporate houses. It is his efforts to reach out to all sections of society through his inclusive development mantra that has inspired hope and confidence particularly among the millions of young Indians in an atmosphere of gloom and desperation. Although he does not claim or project himself as ‘messiah’, many prefer to see him that way. Unfortunately, many of our intellectuals choose to gloss over the fact that the conditions for the rise of a messiah have been created by a remote-controlled, wobbly political formation called the UPA II, in the construction and sustenance of which many of these intellectuals played no small part. Either they provided ideological prop to this opportunistic alliance of the liberals, socialists and Islamists in the name of the fighting the ‘Hindustav’ forces or preferred to maintain an uncanny silence in the face of public uproar against the brazen loot of the state exchequer. It was because of their intriguing silence or lack of pro-active role in combating corruption and crony capitalism that the country’s youths took to the streets under the banner of ‘Youth against Corruption’, which was at a later stage though hijacked by a band of populist anarchists.
What is thus the cause of concern for many conscious citizens of the country is not the prophecy of doom, but the hidden agenda of these self-proclaimed defenders of ‘secular India’. In their attempt to portray Modi and the ideology he represents as a threat to national unity, they are trying to ensure the continuation of the corrupt dispensation in some form or the other so that they do not lose their political relevance and influence in the corridors of power. This precisely explains why they increasingly feel jittery with the surge in support of Narendra Modi and interpret the likely change of government in democratic India as ‘a shift in our civilization.’ Clearly, what the recent press statements warning the electorates about the ‘rising danger of bigotry, communal divide, organized violence’ if Mr. Modi becomes the country’s next Prime Minister seem to suggest is that personal and professional interests of these intellectuals are better served by preserving the status quo regardless of how strong and widespread the public mood for change may be. Underlying such hypocritical expressions of concern for national unity, civilisational values and so on, the real intention of these pro-establishment intellectuals is to distract public attention from the core issues of corruption and inflation by diluting the model-centred political discourse.
11th April 2014
( Prof. Aswini K. Mohapatra
School of International Studies,
JNU,
New Delhi -110067
[email protected] )
Even those who were neutral towards Modi and the BJP have become NAMO supporters this election. The Hindus of India are finally fed-up with the ‘communalism’ tag on them, by so-called secularists. The real India is waking up under the leadership of Shri Narendra Modi and we have waited very long for this moment. Jai Hind !
The intellectuals are worried. The youth, whom they had mesmerised, are now out of their control They were drawn towards Modi, who is promising corruption-free, development oriented administration. Hence, these alla-bulla. So many noice. So much hatred, warning to the public etc. But what to do? It is too late. Their own media, ND TV says, NDA alone will have clear majority. After a decade of corruption, India can expect some good administration. Thank God.
These so-called “eminent individuals” and “intellectuals” are really rootless Indians who float like flotsam and jetsam on the seas. There is another group of US-based academics and assorted “intellectuals'” who are either leftists, or who cater to Islamic lobbyists in return for money. The common denominator is their de-Hinduised mindset.
Having said this, I would like to add that the way BJP/Modi must throw them out of public perception is not to hound them out but to work for the uplift and benefit of all citizens of India irrespective of their religion, culture, or caste. If this is done for five years these so-called “eminent individuals” who profess themselves to be well wishers of Indian society will be ignored by the Indian public at large.
The one exception I would make is that such of the academics and book writers who are prima facie deaf to Hindu concerns and issues and who have been falsifying or glossing over the true history and culture of Indian society, or insulting Hindus as a people of this land called India, must be mercilessly and methodically weeded out of positions of authority or influence. Why? Because it is they who have been relentless in blocking the minds of youth in India to the true history of Indian society over the last several centuries. It is they who have destroyed systematically all vestiges of self esteem and pride in Indians of being Indian first and foremost. It is also they who have infected the Indian mind with divisiveness based on their concepts of “caste”, religion, and entitlements.
R.Venkatanarayanan