Ye BJP haarati kyon nahi?

This is the question that haunts every secular, liberal, left or center minded person in the country - what should we do to defeat BJP?

As though, the results of UP assembly elections were not enough, the results of MCD elections have further made the opponents' hearts sink. Many political analysts and journalists have promulgated BJP invincible and many opposition leaders have already conceived defeat in 2019 general elections.

Though, after the results of consecutive elections, the BJP appears to be invincible, but believe me, it's not. It's the same party which once had only 2 MPs in Lok Sabha. It's the same party, against which all the seculars rallied (& still are). It's the same party which is untouchable for a majority of public and it has come to power with less than 40% votes.

BJP came to power with the promise of security and peace in the country, whereas not much has been done to establish peace in the troubled areas of the country. The situation in Kashmir is as, if not more, volatile as it was 3 years ago. Demonetization, contrary to the claims, has not stopped stone-pelting in Kashmir and Naxals in affected areas. There is no significant achievement of this government in terms of security, international relations or economy. Also the government has not made significant progress in terms of human development.

Then, in spite of all these shortcomings, why & how are they winning? How are they destroying each & everything that comes in their way? What's the source of energy for them? Is it Modi? Is it communalism & polarization? Is it their neoliberal economic policies? Is it because public has lost faith in other parties?

Answer to this is all of the above. So, let's see the solutions to these obstacles posed by BJP.

1. Narendra Modi - Since 2002, we have been trying to portray him as a villain, mass-murderer, narcissist and what not. But he has grown bigger & bigger and public has also supported him ignoring our advice. So, where did we fail? In fact, once we successfully projected him as a threat to the secular fabric of India, we lost in the comfort of our liberal lifestyle. We didn't follow up & took feedback from the public. Nor could we provide any alternative of him. Taking advantage of this, Modi has gradually shed his image of a communal leader and has started building an image of world leader riding on the development wave created by his propaganda machinery. For Hindutva hardliners, 2002 is a life time achievement and they can support the inclusive image of Modi without him doing anything more communal. The problem lies with us who failed to project someone who can counter Modi. We will have to accept that politics has changed. Now, we have politicians like Modi and Yogi who sleep at 11-12 at night & wake up at 3-4 in the morning. On the other hand, we have a youth leader who departs on abroad holidays, just after a defeat, deserting his gloomy party workers. Instead of boosting their morale, he always leaves his party workers in dilemma whether he is the one or they are wasting their energy for the wrong guy. On the other hand, Modi never miss a chance to inspire his party workers, by his words as well as his actions. Gone are the days when leaders were like royals who got up at 11, play golf, enjoy parties, had affairs and the public regarded them as demigods. The problem with us is that we are still obsessed with those who were born with a silver spoon in their mouth & led an ultra luxurious life. We have to get over that obsession and project a leader who is clean, hard working, good orator & has mass appeal. At lower level, there are many such leaders in opposition parties. But there is a void of such leaders at the top. We will have to fill that void soon, otherwise the way Yogi is being hailed by media and being promoted by his party, he is ready to take Modi's place. So, before it's too late, we have to identify a leader and back him against Modi, leaving all our differences behind.

2. Communalism / polarization - This problem is as big, if not bigger, as Narendra Modi. It's a known fact that whenever there is polarization, BJP is the biggest beneficiary of that. So, we will have to stop it at any cost. But how can we stop polarization when actually we have helped it to occur. First, we will have to make the public believe that Modi or BJP can be defeated. Though, minority should be protected and should prosper, but not at the expense of majority or our political ambitions. We have to accept that there is no vote bank today. And if there is any, then the other group may also form a vote bank, which may harm us. The example of UP is before us, where SP and BSP banked on their vote banks and all other castes mobilized to defeat them. So we should abstain from any religious activity, should have same distance from all the religious, social or caste groups and stand up for everything rational & sane voice. Then there will be no need to project BJP as communal, because public have eyes. They can see for themselves. BJP has adopted a multi-pronged approach. They are like a superstore which has everything to offer. To their core supporters, they sell Hindutva, to the indecisive middle class, they sell development and for the weaker section of the society, they have a pint of socialism too. We have to address all these issues. We just can't rely on secularism because what we call secularism, BJP has successfully termed it as minority appeasement. We have to tackle the problem of communalism subtly, without provoking public and giving a helping hand to polarization.

3. Neoliberalism - Neoliberalism is a danger for a socialist or communist society. But what we are doing to oppose it? Nothing. Accept this, farmers have no support in present politics. BJP, no matter how much they appear to be supporting the peasants, is an anti-farmer, anti-labourer party. We will have to create a vote bank of farmers, labourers and small businessmen who are the victims of the neoliberalism policies of BJP. Believe me, it constitutes a humongous majority which, if not otherwise proselytized, can make a difference in the present politics and we will have to deter any attempt of alluring them by BJP in the name of Hindutva. They should be made to understand the dangers of economic policies of BJP. But we will have to do it subtly without provoking or questioning their faith, otherwise we may make it worse. BJP offered us an opportunity in demonetization, but we couldn't make the most of it. We won't get many opportunities like this, but we have to strive and keep fighting for the cause of farmers, labourers and small businesses.

4. Lost faith - Yes, public has lost faith, not only in us but also in themselves. People who are against Modi or BJP are so disillusioned that they can't keep their focus straight. One day, they are against corporates, next day they start caring for them. One day, they are against separatists, next day they start speaking like secessionists. One day, they condemn Naxalite, next day they raise slogans for azadi. They are fighting on these preposterous and trivial issues. We will have to organize them and channelize their energy to fight against Modi and BJP. We will have to earn the faith and support of the public & it can't be done by sitting in our drawing rooms. We will have to come on roads in their support. The example of Tamil farmers is before us. When these farmers were protesting in Delhi, the heat was too much for us to come and sit with them. We should have protested with these farmers throughout their agitation. But some leaders joined them occasionally, and that too in the morning or evening when the heat was bearable for our delicate leaders. How can we expect the leaders to carry the weight of public expectations, if they can't bear the heat for the public? BJP is going to remain in power for eternal if we keep sitting in our homes and wait for their downfall. To defeat BJP, we will have to come on roads and face the heat. We will have to renounce the comfort, display solidarity with sufferers and share the pain of the public. Once we show the way, public will come out to support us. 

So, let me paraphrase the words of Marx, if they can inspire us:
"We have nothing to lose but the series of humiliation meted by Modi to us. We have a country to win.

Seculars, liberals, leftists, centrists of India, Unite!

'Gau Seva', 'Gau Raksha' or 'Gau Mafia'.

It all started with the formation of the new government under Modi when both the gaurakshaks and opponents of beef-ban became vocal and a tussle started. It was evident that the tussle between proponents and opponents of beef ban would ultimately take an ugly turn. The clash of the ideologies leads to the mob lynching of Mohammad Akhlaq of Dadri, Uttar Pradesh over alleged consumption of beef. It was the start of such events.

Although it would be naive to say that such incidents have never taken place earlier, but the recurrence of such events and the uproar over these is alarming. The latest in the series is lynching of a cattle trader in Alwar. These cow-vigilantes are emboldened by the fact that in some states of India, consuming beef or even the rumor of it, is a greater crime that killing someone in the name of it. In fact, the cow protection acts of various states have become equivalent to the blasphemy law of Pakistan which is only a tool to suppress their minorities.

Cow has been a holy animal for Hindus since ages mainly due to their proximity to Lord Krishna and their use as milch and draught animal in India being an agrarian society. The invaders from Central Asia saw cow for the first time in India and started eating it. The sacrifice of cow also started on the occasion of Bakrid, which, it is believed that increased the cow veneration in Hindus. Later, many 'rulers' imposed ban on cow-slaughter from time to time. For example, Hyder Ali, Sultan of Mysore made cow slaughter an offense punishable with cutting off hands of the offender. In Mughal empire, cow slaughter was banned by most of their rule. The last Mughal emperor, Bahadur Shah Zafar also banned cow slaughter in 1857 in the territories ruled by him. Cow slaughter was also banned in other major empires such as Maratha and Sikh. During the Sikh reign, cow slaughter was a capital offense, for which perpetrators were even executed.

In such a society, there came the Europeans, who were habitual consumers of beef and could not afford to give cow a protected status. But the Indian society was not willing to allow them the pleasure. So, in order to satisfy their taste buds, the British applied their tried and tested formula of divide and rule. Britishers, in a way, succeeded in instigating Muslim by terming cow slaughter as their right which was being seized by the majority Hindus. To widen the division between Hindus and Muslims, Britishers legalized cow slaughter, projecting it to be a step in favor of Muslims. However, the movement for cow protection was enormous and found its supporters in a personage no less than Mahatma Gandhi and Dayanand Saraswati. Gandhi termed protection of cow the first action of Swadeshi Government and said that "As for me, not even to win Swaraj, will I renounce my principle of cow protection". Dayanand Saraswati, while rejecting the malpractices of Hindu religion, also supported cow worship. The books, magazines helped in dissemination of the message of cow protection. The movement, which started with establishment of first Gaurakshini Sabha in 1882, spread rapidly. Then only the culture of gaushalas started and people started capturing wandering cows and sending them to these gaushalas. Signature campaigns for ban on cow-slaughter were also started. The movement was not anti-Muslim or anti-Islamic, but some saw it with cynicism and estimated a communal agenda behind this campaign. This thought process was also pandered by British, which resulted in the communal clashes of 1893, in which hundreds of people got killed all over India.

This evil design of Britishers may be seen in the letter of Queen Victoria to Viceroy Lansdowne wherein she writes "The Queen greatly admired the Viceroy's speech on the Cow-killing agitation. While she quite agrees in the necessity of perfect fairness, she thinks the Muhammadans do require more protection than Hindus, and they are decidedly by far the more loyal. Though the Muhammadan's cow-killing is made the pretext for the agitation, it is, in fact, directed against us, who kill far more cows for our army, than the Muhammadans.”

After the independence, the matter of preservation, protection and improvement of stock and prevention of animal diseases, veterinary training and practice was added as Entry 15 of the State List of the Seventh Schedule of the Constitution, meaning that State Legislatures have exclusive powers to legislate the prevention of slaughter and preservation of cattle. However the Hindu organisations demanded for a blanket ban on cow slaughter and including cow protection in the Fundamental Rights, prohibition of cow slaughter was given a place in the Directive Principles of State Policy, which reads, "The State shall endeavour to organize agriculture and animal husbandry on modern and scientific lines and shall, in particular, take steps for preserving and improving the breeds, and prohibiting the slaughter of cows and calves and other milch and draught cattle."

Following this Directive Principle, all the State Governments and Union Territories, except Arunachal Pradesh, Kerala, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Tripura and Lakshadweep, have enacted cattle preservation laws in one form or the other. The oldest laws in this regard are in Jammu & Kashmir and Manipur dating back to 1932 and 1939 respectively. However, in Manipur, the implementation of the law is weak as the majority of the population is Christian and beef is sold openly in many districts.

The most stringent cow protection law is in the State of Gujarat which has recently amended the law extending the punishment and fine. The punishment was increased to a minimum of 10 years and a maximum of life imprisonment, and the fine was enhanced to the range of Rs 1 lakh - Rs 5 lakh. The new law also made offenses under the amended Act non-bailable.

When there exist such strict laws and stricter enforcement of these, one may wonder as to what causes one to slaughter or smuggle cows and where is the necessity of these cow protection units. Rape, murder or any other crime is as big, if not bigger, as cow slaughter, but do we have any organization or Sena against rape which may beat rapists and sometimes give random thrashing to potential rapists. If not, then what's the necessity of having such senas for cow protection? There's not. Then what makes them bold enough to break a law for so-called enforcement of some other law?

The law enforcement agencies themselves have made the matter worse. Their inactions to implement the cow protection laws has emboldened these elements, who instigated by their masters take the matter in their hands and march forward to implement the laws. On the other hand, because of the overenthusiasm of authorities to implement these laws, Muslims feel intimidated enough to take the law into their own hands.

It would be naive to reckon the problem as a religious one and seek a communal solution for it. Like all other problems in India, this is also a political problem and needs to be addressed as one. Revenge is the most powerful source of inspiration to commit a crime. Thus, feelings of victimization in any community should never be evolved.  

The so-called gaurakshaks should be made to understand that there are many ways to respect and save cows than to lynch some person on the rumor of cow slaughter. They can start with serving, taking care and adopting disowned cows. There is a huge amount of corruption in the gaushalas, which the gaubhakts can look after. If all the donations collected towards gauseva is used sincerely, there will not be disowned cows in markets and lanes impeding traffic and getting canned by people of all religions. These gaurakshaks should stop flexing their muscles as the repercussions of their acts will have to be borne by their revered cows. Similarly, beef enthusiasts may also stop daring gaurakshaks by claiming to eat beef. They can make such claims while sitting in their comfortable and secure houses enjoying freedom given by the law of that state, but the poor meat sellers will have to bear the brunt of this gallantry of theirs.

One thing which could be disseminated is that Muslims are not inherently beef-eaters as Muslim invaders hadn't seen cows or buffaloes in the places they came from. The abundance of cattle in India made them start eating beef, which was also prohibited later by the rulers, including Muslim rulers.

The most important thing is prevalence of rule of law. The offenders should be dealt strictly. The existing rules should be enforced and stricter laws be made to deal with the violence committed by cow vigilantes. Furthermore, the politicians need to be sensitized in the matter so as not to incite hatred between communities. The feeling of being exploited and victimized in the name of cow protection should also not be developed in any community.

Having said that, the politicians are going to be the same and to behave in the same manner. So the responsibility lies in the hands of public in general and social organizations in particular. These organizations should spread awareness about the laws regarding cow protection and sensitize people about their rights. Awareness should also be spread about the correct ways to follow when they wish to report breaking of these laws. Because ultimately, the law of the land is supreme and everyone is bound to follow it as long as it exists.

Aam Aadmi Party - a beautiful dream turned into nightmare.

The results of by poll of Rajouri Garden assembly are out. BJP has made a thumping victory with AAP being at third and forfeiting its deposit. They still have a comfortable majority with 66 MLAs out of 70, but this defeat will cost them dearly and MCD elections being at hand, it will demoralize their cadres. This is latest in the series of setbacks AAP has faced in recent times after losing assembly elections in Punjab and Goa. 

Election results are not the only setbacks AAP has faced. Their image has also been tarnished by other events, e.g. the three member Shunglu committee, in it's report has concluded that in Delhi government, powers of top bureaucrats were usurped, the scheme of governance encapsulated in the Constitution was violated and power was abused to benefit the kin of government functionaries. 

All these accusations are against the party which rose to the power on the promise of a corruption free, nepotism free and a righteous society. Where did they fail? Was Anna Hazare right when he said that "elections require huge funds, which will be tough for activists to organise without compromising on their values"? Is AAP following the same old path of anyhow being in power?

 There is a certain charisma in AAP which attract people across ideologies. AAP supporters include religious fanatics as well as those who don't believe in religion at all, businessmen as well as labourers working for them. This is not a small feat. In this way, AAP can be termed a miracle of politics. The secret of this support lies in the strategy of AAP which makes them morally rightists and economically leftists. The best part of their strategy is that they are not confined to any ideology and can choose anything which suits them. If the spurious claims of patients treated in Mohalla clinics be set aside, the work done by them in the field of education and health is commendable. The condition of government schools and hospitals has improved significantly and the public in general and lower class in particular has benefitted immensely from these schemes. The government schools and hospitals themselves sing the success of schemes in these areas. Because of AAP's policies and strict vigil, many EWS families have been able to admit their wards in schools which were unthinkable for them till now.

The freebies, they have doled out, have benefitted people of all social and financial status. These include slashing the rates of electricity and water. Everyone has shared the joy of paying much less for these amenities than they used to pay before AAP came to power. With these schemes and policies, AAP appears to be a formidable force to be reckoned with. The populist measures have also helped them to gain a huge support in the lower income group, which is still their most loyal voter base, however they are also deserting the AAP slowly. Apart from those, AAP is heavily dependent on anti-BJP votes. So, what has transformed them from a mighty force to a group of cry-babies.

Mostly, this degradation of theirs may be attributed to the habit of speaking balderdash more often than not. Their leaders, including the supreme leader, have put their foot in their mouth so many times that their populist schemes and the incredible strategy have lost their charm and  buffoonery has engulfed them.

The functioning of AAP is a clear case of misplaced priorities. The free wifi, as declared in their manifesto, are still awaited. So are the regularization of temporary staff of Delhi government. The occupants of the unauthorized colonies are still waiting for regularization. There is no civic amenities in these areas and with these unlivable colonies lying in the heart of the city, AAP is now promising to turn Delhi into London. AAP should learn from the fate of Shiela Dixit after she promised to turn Delhi into Paris. The indigenous problems demand indigenous solutions. You have to start with small steps, then only you can achieve bigger goals. Public is still to witness a single Marshal in DTC buses. The CCTV cameras are nowhere to be seen. Even the autowallahs, who were the most vocal supporters of AAP, feel deceived and can be seen inducing their customers to vote against AAP. 

Instead of trying to fulfill their poll promises, AAP and AK are always seen locking horns with the center. The latest attacks of AAP on EVMs has made them appear whiners which is definitely not good for the image of a party, specially when the party is enjoying a grand majority by winning assembly elections in 2015, where the same EVMs were used. In another news, Ram Jethmalani, who was to fight Kejriwal's case free of cost, has raised his bill of millions to the government of Delhi. Since, Kejriwal himself had stated that the petition is personal, paying the advocate fee by the government does not inspire honesty and appears to be against the very principles on which AAP was formed.

One more reason for their downfall is their desperation to project them as the leader of the anti-BJP forces. This stance of theirs has only made the anti-BJP votes divide further and has helped BJP. In order to consolidate the anti-BJP votes in their favor, they have tried to make other parties look weak and unworthy of votes; but as the notion goes, wherever there is polarization, it will be most beneficial for BJP. As soon as the news of a particular community voting for AAP breaks out, all the other communities gang up and vote for BJP. This has been a pattern for last three years and AAP, of all political parties, should understand this and try to stop polarization of votes.

AAP should understand that many voters who voted for them in 2015, had been long time BJP supporters and still has a soft corner for it. They can only be shooed off by blaming center for everything and abusing BJP and Modi day in, day out. The way forward for AAP is to alienate themselves from the image of being anti-establishment and maintain a healthy political competition with all parties and at the same time making the center to submit before them for the benefit of the people of Delhi. Because public don't care whether the center is allowing you to do anything or not, they want results, which, unfortunately, are still indiscernible.

So, better late than never, it's time for AAP to leave some bad habits and start a new journey, harmonizing the interests of the party with the interests of Delhi.