On Ram Navami and Hanuman Janmotsav, India witnessed two different scenarios. On the one hand, people appreciated Muslim community welcoming the participants of processions (Shobha Yatras) with flower petals and sweet-water (Sharbat), on the other, processions were pelted, shots fired on police in Madhya Pradesh, Delhi and other states of India, allegedly by few members of the minority community.
On this issue and subsequent writings/ interviews given by people considered anti-Modi, Life & More contributor Satyendra Bhardwaj caught up with author-columnist-academician Bimal Prasad Mohapatra, Faculty of Management Studies at Trident Group of Institutions, Bhubaneswar and and Senior Fellow in Defence Studies.
A section of ‘intellectuals’ belonging to Left or Left-liberal ideology and foreign media are trying to impose the “Hindu Nationalist” tag on PM Modi. Why do you think are they doing this?
Let us first start with discussing term ‘intellectual’. Who is an intellectual? Answer is: An intellectual is ‘a person possessing a highly developed intellect’ or ‘a prominent political thinker and intellectual’. And they are supposed to be unbiased, civil and rational. But, unfortunately, I don’t find anybody from India’s Left or Left-liberal ideology match into the above description. Yes, they are good speakers and writers, have good skills in Queen’s language in the country crazy for everything Western and English.
Lefts are dominating intellectual discourses in top institutions and media in India. Has anybody ever heard or read column in which they have discussed why Communist governments got dismantled in Soviet Union and Eastern Europe? What is the economic and social condition of people in North Korea, Cuba and in Chinese rural backyards where there are Communist rules? And the condition of minority in China’s Xinjiang province, Tibet, etc. Why they are not discussing these issues? Simply because they are not Lefts and Left-liberals, but in fact, they are illiberal, or opportunists, and ‘paid intellectuals’, ready to be hired for highest payers. Unfortunately, the West has the money, the kind India does not have. One US dollar amounts to Rs 76! They consider these activities as their money-making enterprises, in short and simple, I can allege these activities are their bread and butter, whereas they are fast losing their support bases among the masses.
Earlier, these people were high in demand (ref: Radia Tape) because they were getting a part of booty earned by corrupt politicians, bureaucrats and judges. Now, since corruption at the top level has almost ended, as has also been recognised and revealed by one former US Ambassador to India, there are sufficient reasons for their enmity towards PM Modi.
As far as foreign media is concerned, they are mostly Western, based in Europe, America and Australia, and very recently Arab countries. Three categories of media barons and journalists are dominating these media houses. They are: 1. White Supremacists or Colonialists, 2. Leftists, and 3. Evangelists and Jihadists (Abrahamic brotherhood). These people are in fact not at all liberal and secular in their outlook; they are opportunists working for their sponsors’ interests (example: Arms manufacturers) in so far their dealing with Indian issues.
During the early days of ongoing Ukraine-Russia war, one heir apparent of British Queen told ‘this kind of war is normally seen in Africa/ Asia, not in Europe.’ What does it mean? A majority of African and Asian countries were Western countries colonies. While they balkanised these continents and vacated their colonies in such a manner that the colonies would remain permanently fighting within themselves so that the West could do business with their interventions and arm sells. Lately, they understood that Modi’s policies and popularity are major huddle to their ongoing activities in third world countries. Therefore, they not only tag Modi with ‘Hindu Nationalist’ brand but also have gone to the extent of equating him with ill-famous Hitler.
A former Governor of RBI (please name) has warned that communal tag will hurt Indian industry? Why do you think that this sort of narrative is being pushed?
That former Governor of RBI is an economist of Dr Manmohan Singh kind – I mean a politician in the garb of an economist! He has political ambitions. And, he does not see any scope for his ambitions to be realised in existing political set up. He desperately wants the existing government to go, come what may! Now, he is making statements, comments, and writing columns coordinating with anti-ruling party establishments in politics, media and civil society back in India.
Why do you think Modi is being tagged as “anti-minority” (read anti-Muslim), “Hindu Nationalist” and “fascist leader”. Why are they doing this and how does it impact India?
The propagandists want Modi to be boycotted in international bilateral, trilateral, quadrilateral and multilateral forums like he was banned from entering to US earlier. Once Modi is banned or boycotted in international forums, the Western stooges’ will get booster to propagate that India’s international image is getting spoiled due to Modi, and ultimately it will impact his electoral prospect in elections.
Why do you think the Opposition parties and their ‘intellectual’ supporters are now cleverly using Hindu symbols to prove themselves as Hindus?
They are doing this to retain their political connect with the majority community. The Opposition parties have started realising that their minority appeasement policies have started boomeranging. And due to their minority appeasement policies, majority community has started polarising burying their caste differences as witnessed very recently in UP assembly election. Apart from the above, minorities have now got their own minority politicians-led parties.
Do you think the Central Government or the BJP-led state governments are treating minorities, especially Muslims, well?
Mute fact has been that minorities, especially Muslims, are part and parcel of Indian population – social, political, economical, cultural, etc. They are integral part of Indian Judiciary (Eg: Justice Abdul Nazeer, Justice Mohammad Rafiq, etc), Indian politics (Eg: Arif Md. Khan, Muktar Abbas Naqvi, etc.), Indian bureaucracy (Eg: Diplomat Syed Akburudin, Syed Asif Ibrahim, etc.), Indian Defence forces (Eg: Lt. Gen. Syed Ata Hasnain, Major Mohammed Ali Shah, etc.) etc. etc.
The Modi government in Centre and his party’s government in the states recognised this aspect since the party’s foundation. There is no change in the party’s approach towards Muslims before the party was in power and now in power. Only difference is: earlier non-BJP governments were using them as their vote bank and deliberately kept them backwards and illiterate because empty stomach and empty mind can be manipulated easily. But BJP governments are for sabka saath, sabka vikas and sabka vishwas, though misinterpretation and misrepresentation are there in plenty. The BJP governments see in educated and economically developed minorities better integration of them in mainstream.
