India at 75,
A Secular Democratic Republic Held Hostage
At the stroke of the midnight hour 75 years ago, India
began her ‘tryst with destiny’, a country with long and ancient history and
civilisation, freed of the shackles and servitude of the British Empire. At the
midnight of August 14, 1947,Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, as the first Prime Minister of free India and the
worthy political heir of the Mahatma, made a stirring historical speech: “Long years ago,
we made a tryst with destiny and now the time comes when we shall redeem our
pledge, not wholly or in full measure, but very substantially. It is fitting
that at this solemn moment, we take the pledge of dedication to the service of
India and her people and to the still larger cause of humanity… The ambition of
the greatest man of our generation has been to wipe every tear from every eye. That
may be beyond us, but as long as there are tears and suffering, so long our
work will not be over.” The power of that magical moment, and then hopes raised
of what we would make of that freedom, shall be etched in people’s memory for generations
to come.
The years 1947 to 1952 were the period of construction,
with the partition of India resulting in more than a million people killed and 15
million migrated to either side of the border, and the savage communal carnage posing
serious danger to internal security, holding together India, with the second
largest population and massive illiteracy and hundreds of religions and
languages and communities and cultures, and ensuring its survival was the
biggest challenge. The Western world written off India at birth. And after Gandhi’s assassination in January
1948, it was predicted India would break up as a country. Churchill declared:
“In handing over the Government of India to these so-called political classes
we are handing over to men of straw, of whom, in a few years, no trace will
remain.”
If India had survived the horrors of partition, it was
due to the visionary leadership of Nehru and his commitment to inclusive,
pluralistic, democratic and just India. On Gandhi’s assassination, Prime
Minister Nehru, in his letter dated 5 February 1948 to the Chief Ministers,
expressed concern about the diabolic plot: “It would appear that a deliberate coup
d’état was planned involving the killing of several persons and the
promotion of general disorder to enable the particular group concerned to siege
power…We must remember that the people opposed to us are thoroughly
unscrupulous. They will say one thing and do another.”
And after Patel’s departure in 1950, the task of
consolidating, unifying a diverse country, and building the nation was left to
him, with his erstwhile colleagues and comrades- Bhimrao Ambedkar, J.B. Kriplani,
Jayaprakash Narayan, C Rajagopalachari - deserting him and turning his bitter critics.
Nehru provided the philosophical
foundation for the Constitution, drafted by some 300 eminent men and women of
India(83% of whom were Hindus), that had a text of 145,000 words long, and its
imagination of a diverse and vibrant democracy; laid the foundation for the
largest Parliamentary democracy in the world based on universal adult franchise,
with emphasis on science and technology; built the IIMs and the IITs;
established the BARC; and , by building dams, steel plants and heavy industries,
laid a solid foundation for industrialisation. He ensured conducting free and
fair general elections thrice in 1952,1957 and 1962, reposing unwavering faith
in the people India. He built and nurtured democratic institutions; independent
judiciary and free Press- the pillars of democracy. He treated Parliament as a
serious august body to which he was accountable. He set the example himself, spending
hours in parliament, suffering Prime Minister’s Question Time and responding seriously
to queries unworthy of his attention. And through the Five-Year Plans, he
ceaselessly worked towards establishing a ‘socialistic pattern of society’, to eradicate
poverty, disease and ignorance.
To Nehru a good society meant: “Broadly speaking,
apart from the material things that are necessary obviously, a certain individual
growth in the society. For I do believe, that ultimately it is the individual that counts…the old Hindu idea that if there is any divine essence in the world
every individual possesses a bit of it… Every individual has an importance and
he should be given full opportunities to develop- material opportunities
naturally, food, clothing, education, housing, health. etc. They should be
common to everybody. I do believe in certain standards. Call them moral standards,
call them what you like, spiritual standards. They are important in any
individual and in any social group. And if they fade away, all the material advancement
you may have will lead to nothing worthwhile.” As the pre-eminent figure in
India’s era of transition, Nehru bears comparison with Roosevelt and Churchill,
Lenin and Mao, men who guided their people through a period of national crisis.
Transgressing the founding
principles of the Republic
India, under the present right-wing regime, as she celebrates 75 years of her independence, has transgressed the founding principles of the Republic. First, the ideals that inspired the freedom movement no longer guide the nation. There is an orchestrated campaign of calumny to erase Nehru’s legacy. The history of the freedom struggle and the history of post- independent India is being tampered beyond redemption to suit the political narrative. It is so disgraceful that Nehru- a principal architect of the freedom movement and the father of modern India- doesn’t even figure in the Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav. It is a very colored and partisan celebration.
Why this pathological hatred of Nehru by the BJP-RSS? Purushottam Agrawal- writer, academic and political commentator- has this to say: "The RSS has tried to appropriate Gandhi, Patel, Shastri, Bose, Bhagat Singh, Tagore, even Ambedkar, but never Nehru. Because Nehru- the moderniser rooted in tradition- was firmly against the ideological vision of Hindutva and no one knows better than Hindutva ideologues. They hate him precisely because he earned the trust, respect and faith of people the hard way, without catering to their baser instincts and phony sentiments. They also fear him because he could connect with Indian people without using the religious idiom, he could chide them when needed as he had earned their faith not by endorsing reactionary attitudes, but by his attempt to lead them towards enlightenment. He was a true leader. It is this fear which has led to the pettiness not only on the part of the government, but also on the part of some media houses who undertake dirty tricks to erase his memories. And that is why no amount of calumny is too much and no low is low enough for demeaning Nehru.".
Second, politics is now all about being in power by any means.
And democracy is reduced to a sheer number game, with rising intolerance and increasingly
belligerent majoritarianism turning communal and politically and socially
regressive. Third, Parliament has lost its sheen. It is no longer a house for open-ended free
discussion and debate on issues of national and global ramifications. The
ruling party’s idea of transmitting business in Parliament is ‘constructive work’,
tolerating no criticism of its polices, and passing legislations without any ‘disruption.’
And the Prime Minister doesn’t even bother to attend the sessions.
Fourth, the voice of opposition is muzzled. The
political opposition is equated to enemy, calling the opposition leaders unpatriotic
and anti-national. Opposition is the lifeline of a parliamentary democracy. On
July 16, addressing the All-India Legal Service Authorities Meet at Jaipur, the
Chief Justice of India N.V. Ramana, observed that the diversity of opinion
enriches polity and society: “Political opposition should not translate into
hostility, which we are sadly witnessing these days. These are not signs of a
healthy democracy. Strong, vibrant and active Opposition helps to improve government
and corrects the functioning of the government.” He expressed concern that
there used to be mutual respect between the government and the Opposition
earlier, which is now ‘diminishing’, with the government making no effort to
reach out and accommodate the opposition.
Fifth, the biggest crisis facing India at this
juncture is ‘collapse of the nation’, said the Noble laureate Amartya Sen,
while inaugurating the Amartya Research Centre recently in Kolkata: “There is a
reason to be afraid now. The current
situation in the country has become a cause for fear.” It is ‘extraordinary’ that the colonial laws
were being used to put people behind bars. He said: “India has an inherent
culture of being tolerant. India was not a country representing only Hindu
culture…Muslim culture was also part of the country’s vibrant history.” He
recalled how Dara Shikoh -Shah Jahan’s eldest son- translated 50 Upanishads
from the original Sanskrit to Persian that enabled the world to know about Hindu
scriptures. Hindu culture and Hindu traditions.
Sixth, saffronising education. The administrative
positions in universities and colleges are being filled with persons
subscribing to the RSS ideology. Vice President Venkaiah Naidu has recently
asked: ‘what is wrong with saffronising education?’ Well, as a person groomed
in the RSS school of thought he should know it better. The UGC has recently
issued a show-cause notice to a political science teacher of the private Sharda
University for setting a question in the BA first year paper: ’Do you find any
similarities between Fascism/Nazism and Hindu right-wing Hindutva? Elaborate
with arguments.” This is how saffronising education means controlling the young
minds and aborting the critical thinking.
It is interesting to recall what Dr.S. Radhakrishnan, whose knowledge of
the depth and quality of Indian civilization earned him the position of a
Spalding Professor of Eastern Religions and Ethics at Oxford University, had recommended,
as the Chairman of the University Education Commission, in 1949, the
introduction of religious education in our universities. He suggested that
students in the first-year degree course be introduced to the lives of great
thinkers such as “Gautama the Buddha, Confucius, Zoroaster, Socrates, Jesus,
Somkara, Ramanuja, Madhava, Mohammad, Kabir, Nanak, Gandhi.” It was very
inclusive and showed the openness of his curious mind. By including the
founders of major religions, he was affirming their value for an Indian
education.
Seventh, emergence of an oppressive corrupt political
culture. Misusing the central agencies and toppling the elected governments has
become a new norm. Unleashing the central agencies-like ED, CBI, IT-against the
political rivals and the critics to intimidate and silence made the democracy
and the rule of law untenable, with the money power making the anti-defection
law almost redundant. In our criminal justice system, the process has become
the punishment, says Justice Ramana. Out of 6.1 lakh prisoners, around 80% are
under trials. They are one of the most
vulnerable sections of society. From hasty, indiscriminate arrests to
difficulty in obtaining bail, the process leading to the prolonged
incarcerations of undertrials, denying them the right to life and liberty.
And finally, glorifying Godse and equating Savarkar
with Mahatma Gandhi. The June 2022 issue of Antim Jan, a magazine
published by the Gandhi Smriti and Darshan Samiti (GSDS), of which Narendra Modi
is the Chairman., stood out for a reason. According to Seema Chishti, Vinayak Savarkar,
a central figure in Mahatma Gandhi’s assassination trial, “was let off for lack
of adequate corroborative evidence, but the Jivanlal Kapur Commission set up in
the 1960s concluded: ‘All these facts taken together were destructive of any theory
other than the conspiracy to murder by Savarkar and his group.’ No further
inquiries about Savarkar role were made as he was dead by then (The
Hindu,29/07).” In the article in Antim
Jan, BJP leader Vijay Goel- the Vice Chairman, GSDS-tries to place Savarkar
on the same footing as Mahatma Gandhi: ‘Savarkar’s place in history and stature
in freedom struggle is no less than that of Gandhi. The lionising of Savarkar
and the diminution of Gandhiji have implications in terms of the essence of
India’s future.” And “If the nation is
now only about one faith and a permanent line between two identities that Hindutva
politics obsesses about (Hindu and Muslim) then the entire larger India project
would be jeopardy. This was a framing Gandhiji opposed vehemently and paid for
with his life.”
What we are witnessing in ‘New India’ is not only
discrediting Nehru and the values and ideals that he held dear to keep India
unified; but also disengaging with Gandhiji’s ideas even as stated ideals. A
Secular Democratic Republic that the founding fathers established is held
hostage by falsification and divisive politics of hatred and violence.
Comments
Post a Comment