Gandhi versus Godse

 

Gandhi versus Godse

The recent visit of Rahul Gandhi to the US, from May 30 to June 4, and his public speeches and interactions with cross section of people- intellectuals, journalists, academics, politicians and students in three major cities of California, Washington DC and New York, catapulted him into the limelight on the world stage.  He emerged as a principal National Opposition leader in India with a clear vision and as someone who is well read and well-informed and a link to the rest of the world to understand the state of democracy in India and its problems.  He is seen as someone vehemently defending democracy in India and as a hope to protect democracy everywhere. He comes out as a central figure with his outspoken utterances, fielding questions from anybody and practically on any subject and answering them spontaneously without a teleprompter.  This is remarkable for a politician.

 

 Addressing the NRIs in California at an event Mohabbat Ki Duman he said: “The world is too big and complicated for any person to know everything…yet there is a group of people in India who are absolutely convinced they know everything. They think they know even more than God. …And, of course, our PM is one such specimen.  If you sat Modiji with God, he will explain to God how the universe works…They think they can explain history to historians, science to scientists and warfare to the army. But at the core of it is mediocrity. They are not ready to listen.” And “a small group of people who control the system and the media are stoking the flames of hatred.”

 

At the Stanford University, speaking at the global transition and how the world is changing, Rahul Gandhi said he was the first person to be handed out the maximum sentence for criminal defamation with the disqualification from parliament and that when he entered the politics in 2004, he couldn’t imagine that something like this possible in India. But “then I think it has actually given a huge opportunity. Probably much bigger than the opportunity I would have. That’s just the way politics works.”  He wondered why the Prime Minister doesn’t come here and answer some tough questions. According to him, it is important for political leaders to put themselves in situation where they faced questions and learn from it.

 

He said, with all the force at its command the government could not physically stop the Bharat Jodo Yatra because it represented the truth about India. Power and Force are different things. Power is aligned with truth. Force cannot suppress the power of truth.  That is how Mahatma Gandhi’s power of truth defeated the mightiest empire. Similarly, the declaration of independence of America was the power of truth. He also said the Chinese non-democratic vision of the world cannot be a model for others to follow. The authoritarian structure must yield to a democratic model of development. India has a central role to play here. China’s vision of production has to be democracy.

 

He said his messaging during the visit was two-fold- first to Indians who lived in the US and the second to American people who shared democratic values. He applauded the Indian Americans for holding up the Indian flag in American, showing the American people what it means to be an Indian by respecting their culture and learning from them, while also allowing the Americans to learn from them.  He told the India diaspora: “You make us all proud. When we think of our country, you are all our ambassadors. When America says Indian people are extremely intelligent. Indian people are masters of IT, Indian people are respectful. All these ideas that have come, they’ve come because of you and because of your actions and your behaviour. Indians do not believe in hating each other” (FPJ 1/6).

 

Gandhi spoke at the Hudson Institute, addressed the press at the National Press Club, in Washington DC and met prominent American and Indian diaspora figures. He said:” the thing to remember is that Indian democracy is a global pubic good. Because India is large enough that a collapse of democracy in India will affect …will have an impact on the world. So that is for you how much you have to value Indian democracy. But for us, it is an internal matter, and it’s a fight that we are committed to, and we are going to, we are going to win” (The Hindu 3/6). Senator Chris Van Hollen of Maryland warned “against India deviating from the path of Mahatma Gandhi and Jawaharlal Nehru” (HT 3/6). Gandhi spoke from his heart and with a generous dose of genuineness, authentic in what he said.  He showed political acumen and fine knowledge of how to take on an opponent without sounding harsh or using thunderous language and cheap jibes.  

 

Addressing a public meeting at the New York’s Javits Centre on 4 June, Rahul Gandhi said: “India is witnessing a battle between those who believe in Mahatma Gandhi and those who believe in Nathuram Godse, those who look only in the rear-view mirror: “This is the phenomenon of Narendra Modiji. He is trying to drive the Indian car and he only looks in the rear-view mirror. And he does not understand why this car is crashing, not moving forward” (The Hindu 6/6).  

 

Gandhi also said the Indian freedom struggle began in South Africa, and Mahatma Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru, Sardar Patel, Subash Chandra Bose, and B R Ambedkar were all NRIs who made a difference.  They led the Indian freedom movement and the Congress has imbibed the values that these stalwarts fought for. And that is what is expected from Indians in America: “There is a fight going on back home between two ideologies, one that we represent, and the other that the BJP and RSS represent. The simplest way to describe this fight is you have Gandhi versus Godse. On one side, a brave man, an NRI like you, the most impactful NRI that India has had in many many years, a humble man, a simple man who believed in India, propagated non-violence and searched for the truth. And on the other side was Godse- violent, angry, hateful, unable to face the reality of his own life” (HT 6/6).