A Golden Chance for India - The Delhi Elections and Stakeholders

The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) has just swept the Delhi Assembly polls. I want to spend a few minutes on what it means for the various stakeholders.

AAP: 

 1. Obviously the centre of attention and rightly so. This is a golden chance for them to prove that they are actually different and can make a huge improvement to our society.

2. They have consistently projected a holier-than-thou attitude and out of trust or naivety people of Delhi have given them a massive mandate. Modi has a big mandate but is crippled due to lack of numbers in the Rajya Sabha. Kejriwal does not have that excuse or handicap. There is no legislative council in Delhi. If he wishes he can radically change the face of Delhi. So given the nature of his victory he will be held to higher standards. Kejriwal must remember that the mightier fall harder.

3. Kejriwal has cautioned his party against getting carried away. The way the BJP fought under Modi's name the AAP fought under Kejriwal's. It now remains to be seen whether other members of the party have the same prudence that Kejriwal has displayed or whether having tasted power the party will descend into politics-as-usual. For the state's sake and the country's let us hope that does not happen.

4. From the vote share statistics it looks as if the AAP was able to successfully attract the Congress' support base. People in India do not have a very long memory. For all we know this support base can go back to the Congress during the next election unless the AAP is able to truly prove its worth.

BJP:

1. Undoubtedly a humbling defeat for the party. They chose to make it a Modi vs Kejriwal election. Now predictably they are trying to shield Modi for the defeat.

2. Partners and obviously opposition parties are taking digs at the seeming "invincibility" of Modi being broken. This is a good opportunity for the BJP to introspect. There are multiple lessons for the party.

3. The party should stop parachuting people who jumped ship from the opposition and should give more responsibilities to those who have been with the party throughout.

4. There should not be hubris about the earlier Lok Sabha mandate. There should be more maturity and humility going forward. It has been trying to muscle in onto partners' territory also in some states. This may be the time to go slow and think this through.

5. Let Modi not be the face of eveything. The BJP touted itself as a cadre-based party and as a party with a difference. This was lost as soon as Modi came onto the national stage. This may be good for victories, but can also lead to black eyes.

6. However all said and done, the vote share of the BJP is almost intact. This means people still believe in the party and/or Modi. This is the silver lining.

Congress:

1. The Congress today is probably the best example of what happens to those who abuse power in a democracy. Earlier in the (rest of) Andhra Pradesh (AP) state elections the Congress drew a blank. This is the second instance. The Congress was in power at the centre, Delhi and (united) AP for a long time. However the electorate gave a stunning rebuke. This is nothing less than a slap in the face.

2. This is a serious time for the Congress to revisit its grassroots and have a re-look at its leadership. Ajay Maken has been left to fend the press and there is absolute silence from the "first family". While  Modi and Kejriwal can be accused of over-communicating today the Nehru-Gandhis and the Congress in general insist on remaining aloof. 

3. There have been multiple calls from across the country to change the leadership. It is high time the party does so. However the chances of that actually happening are low to non-existent. Maken has already tendered his resignation. Probably AK Antony will head a committee set up to investigate reasons for the defeat decimation. The report will blame something or someone else and the Congress will reaffirm its faith in the Nehru-Gandhis. The founding fathers in their graves will put a washing machine's dryer to shame.

Rest of the opposition:

1. Kejriwal's win is a whiff of oxygen to them. Whether it will ensure their survival or whether it is dying burst of the flame remains to be seen. Post the central elections there have been frantic efforts to form "an alternative to the Congress and the BJP" or a "secular bulwark against the communal BJP". It has seen the likes of Nitish Kumar and Lalu Prasad Yadav coming together. The TMC is in disarray because of the Saradha scam. This victory may become a rallying point for the rest of the opposition. 

2. However in line with the "I am different" rant of the AAP, Kejriwal may not want to align with these people. There is also a risk that the AAP will eat into the vote share of these parties in their respective states. So it remains to be seen whether these parties will welcome the AAP to contest elections in their own states. 

India:

1. I truly pray for the sake of the country that Kejriwal works miracles in Delhi. Given his mandate he can. I want him to bring in more empowerment, more digitization of services and the likes which, to paraphrase Modi, will maximize governance and minimize government. I am reading a nicely written book by Mihir Sharma called Restart. The author rightly says that proper reforms taken up in one state can change the country.

2. Today we are in the era of competitive politics. While this competition has always been about things like who will give more subsidies, free stuff etc. today it is also about development. The young Indian electorate of a state would love to see successful schemes from other states being implemented in the home state also. Thus it can become a question of survival for other political parties to emulate the AAP, if it is successful.

3. The AAP also seems to make socialist noises from time to time. Undoubtedly the government has to take care of the poor, needy and deserving. However the emphasis should be more on deserving rather than anything else. Let there not be free stuff for the sake of free stuff or populism.

4. Also let there not be witch hunting of corporates. Nobody claims corporates are epitomes of saintliness. However punish the guilty with transparency. Do not make it seem like a witch hunt, driving investment off.

5. Today India needs foreign investment. I refer to Mihir Sharma's book again. We cannot print money as that will lead to more inflation. We do not seem to have sufficient resources to invest in our needs ourselves. Maybe if we can decrease black money we may have sufficient resources. However this cannot be done in a day. Hence we need foreign money also. Let this not be driven away by the AAP.

At the end of the day I would love to see synergy between Modi and Kejriwal, two individuals who have radically transformed the way we look at India, its citizens and its politics. These two, working together can change the face of the country. This is a synergy which the country needs, and I cannot over emphasize this.

Do we overly idolize our NRIs/PIOs?

Citizens of India, present or erstwhile, fall into different categories - native citizens, NRIs (non-resident Indians), PIOs (persons of Indian origin) and OCIs (overseas citizens of India). Modi wants to unit PIOs and CIOs under one category. At the risk of generalization I can say that most of the Indians abroad are Gujaratis, Malayalis, Punjabis and maybe Tamilians and Telugu-speaking people.

Those abroad, especially the non-resident Indian (NRI) has been a variously-regarded person in India. He has been reviled as a prime example of brain drain. He has been accused of abusing government subsidy via IITs/IIMs and then flying out at the first available opportunity. He has been accused of jacking up property prices to levels unreachable by the common man. Parents are afraid what may happen to their daughters married to NRI grooms.

He has also been admired for being a significant source of money inflow into the economy, especially in terms of USD. He has been admired for having held high the flag of India abroad. He has created a role model for others to look up to (whether the emulation will be in India or abroad is a different matter). He has created an image of Indians as hardworking and intelligent abroad. Parents also want NRI grooms for their daughters.

Earlier it was probably engineers and doctors leaving India after education. Today added to that number is the large number of (mostly) software-related professionals who go on both long-term and short-term assignments. Earlier there was not much government focus here. In fact the Ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs was probably created more to accommodate leaders in the cabinet than for any practical purposes. However now there is a lot more emphasis with a Gujarati being the PM and the support he has among Indians abroad.

 

In this context this article seeks to explore if we idolize them a little too much and whether this also puts them under a lot of pressure. In particular I am referring to those who voluntarily give up citizenship of India or are descendants of such people. This is their right, their choice, no questions asked about that. However I want to ask whether we should idolize a person who does not want to be looked upon as an Indian anymore. We seem to go into paroxysms of joy when we here about people of Indian origin taking up posts in governments abroad. Please note that the foreign governments consider them their citizens. "Our" guys consider themselves foreign citizens. For example, see what Bobby Jindal said and is going through now. The same happens with the Nobel Prize. Take a look at the list of Nobel laureates of India. Three of them voluntarily gave Indian citizenship up.

We Indians take an inordinate amount of joy in our past and very much like to rest on our laurels. These people abroad have made it on their own. We should be happy for them. However instead of just feeling proud that "our" guy has made it, we should question how these conditions can be created in India, especially in the areas of science and education. We should strive to create a scenario where people do not need to go out because their dreams may not be fulfilled here. As long as the currency of a foreign country is valued more than ours obviously it will carry monetary attractiveness. I am however talking about taking India back to the status it enjoyed in the ancient world as a knowledge centre (I am being atavistically proud now). Today foreigners already come to India either for the "exposure" it offers in terms of business environment, or after becoming religious, spiritual or cultural converts. I want the country to reach a stage (probably already on the way) where more and more inventions happen here, where scientific advancements out of India become commonplace. I want India to produce more and more quality PhDs. I want our institutions, both academic and research-oriented to produce more ground-breaking papers. In short I want India to occupy the place the US and now increasingly China occupy in the world today. Bas itna sa khwaab hain.

A response to Brinda Karat - part 2 - an example of proselytization

This is in continuation with my last post where I had said I would give a personal example of how proselytizers work.

My father and I were in the Visakhapatnam beach some time last year. We were strolling when suddenly a lady walked up to us, gave us a pamphlet and walked away. I am reproducing half of this pamphlet here. There were some scanning issues with the other half. I have attached the screenshots of the original Telugu pamphlet.

Title - The incarnation in our Vedas

The pamphlet claims that the names which follow are part of a sahasranAmAvali. A Hindu would suppose that these nAmAs are part of the Vishnu SahasranAma. 

 

1. However the Vishnu SahasranAma is not part of any Veda as such. It is taken from the Mahabharata. So the pamphlet begins with a lie. Further against each line, sources in the Bible are given which means an originally Greek document has now been translated into Sanskrit! Further there is no concept of the many names of God anywhere in Christianity or in Abrahamic religions. Please correct me if I am wrong.

2. Also to the best of my limited knowledge at least some of the lines are grammatically trash (though an average layman may think otherwise).

3. There is obviously no Om in Christianity. I understand that "the Word" or "Amen" is a Christian equivalent. 

4. The names mentioned - daridranArAyana, brahmaputra, kanyasuta,umArtha, vidhirSTa, ajamuga, michchasoola arudAru, panchaga, phrim proom(?!), dakSina mAtra

5. What follows is too lengthy to type, but sounds like utter nonsense.

6. What follows seem to be either real or fake slokas from Hindu holy books which have been given a Christian twist.

7. But the highlight? It claims that the God mentioned in the gAyatri mantra is the same as that mentioned in the Bible! The translation given of the mantra is nonsense.

A response to Brinda Karat - part 1

This is in response to this article by Brinda Karat in the NDTV website. In the interest of brevity I am putting this post in two parts. The second part is definitely, in my opinion more interesting.

 

At the outset let me declare that I have no issue with any religion as long as it does not interfere with mine. Let each person worship God the way s/he wants. In principle and personally, I am against conversions of any kind - voluntary, forced and more importantly in today's India, induced - and to any religion. Conversion means the converted has lost faith in "his" religion or God. Today, when PK is the flavour of the day, this is all the more abnormal. The Indian saying goes, eko sat, vipraah bahudhaa vadanti - the truth is one, the learned call it by many names. However every person has the freedom to worship God the way he wants. Krishna says in the Gita

yo yo yaam yaam tanum bhaktah shradhdhayaarchitumichchati

tasya tasyaachalaam sradhdhaamtaameva vidadhaamyaham

 

यो  यो याम याम तनुम्  भक्तः श्रद्धयार्चितुमिच्छति 

तस्य तस्याचलाम् श्रध्द्धाम् तामेव विदधाम्यहम्

 

Paraphrasing, however one wishes to worship I make that path steady.

 

Also as Vivekananda said a Hindu does not ask anyone to convert. If that were the case the Jews and Parsis who came to India and took refuge would either have become Hindus or would have been wiped out by now.

This is how Hinduism works.

As the saying goes, there is no smoke without fire. Today the aspect which is creating headlines is the smoke - "reconversion" to Hinduism. While this is certainly illegal and deplorable if forced, nobody seems to be talking about the fire behind the smoke - forced and induced conversions, especially to Christianity. Via twitter, Gul Panag and Amrita Bhinder I found this article which highlights the issue well.

We have people like Rajiv Malhotra who are highlighting the activities of proselytizers in their works. Refer to this article in the Times of India. Creation of stotras glorifying Jesus and putting up dhwajastambhas in front of church are ways of "acclimatizing" people to Christianity before striking the final blow and converting them completely to Christianity, when all such pretenses are dropped.

I can personally attest to a few of these practices, the most blatant of which I have reserved for the next part:

1. I have seen major churches in Chennai where there is a prominent pillar in front of the church which resembles a Hindu dhwaja except that it has a cross on top of it - San Thome, St. Thomas Mount for example.

2. The church is referred to as a koil which is the Tamil word for temple.

3. I was in Rajamundry recently for my grandmother's final rites. On the ghats along the Godavari there are painted signs which talk about traita siddhaanta bhagavad geeta. Though it sounds like the Bhagavad Gita this is actually referring to the Gospels and Bible of Christianity. The term actually talks about the concept of the Christian Trinity - the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost.

4. Spreading canards about Hinduism - Refer to this Wikipedia post on Thomas, the apostle of Jesus Christ.

In my next post I will share a personal experience along with some translations, as I can manage.

Throwing out the God child along with the caste bathwater

This post is in response to an article I read on the NDTV website, originally by Subhashini Ali. A little search on Google lead me to a Wikipedia article on the lady which suggests that she is an atheist. Now I strongly believe in individual freedoms and hence her being an  atheist or theist is none of my concern. However as an atheist or as a rationalist, as many an atheist would like to call himself or herself one wishes there was a little more research that went in before condemning the Bhagavad Gita.

The caste system today is an evil which needs to be eradicated, no doubt in that. It is frequently and well-said that we do not cast our vote but vote our caste. Further it is a well-known fact that politicians of all religions often subscribe to narrow religious views to pander to their constituencies, or who they think are their constituents. However what is to be understood is that there is a difference between morality, spiritualism and religiosity. We do not need to deride divinity at every available opportunity.

The article in essence says that the Bhagavad Gita was blatantly casteist. By extension Hinduism is blatantly casteist. I would like to strongly contest this. My sources are given at the bottom of the page. I hope that this serves as a beginning of my readers' own research into the realities of Indian culture, religion and spirituality. In a later post I will show from personal experience how differences/similarities are exploited by certain agents in our society today.

A confession - the quoted sources are quite exhaustive and I myself have not gone through all of them. A lot of the material below has been copied from the sources referenced below.

1. First of all sloka I am not sure what Ms Ali is referring to when she talks about 1.44 in the Gita. The sloka referenced here is completely different!

2. ChaaturvarNyam mayaa srushTam guNa karma vibhaagashah (Gita 4:13) - the four castes have been created on the basis of qualities and deeds. Mind you, not by birth.

3. Who is a so-called Brahmin? - Brahma jaanaati iti braahmanah - he who knows Brahman (Supreme Godhead, NOT a personal God) is a so-called Brahmin.

4. janmana jayate sudrah
    samskarad bhaved dvijah
    veda-pathad bhaved vipro

    brahma janati brahmanah

 

This is a little more contentious. By birth one is born a sudra, by samskaara one becomes a twice-born. Here samskaara may mean ceremony also. One can generalize it to mean culture also. By chanting Vedas one can become a learned one. Some of the greatest exponents, for example Suta muni, were so-called Sudras.

5. sudre tu yad bhavel laksma
dvije tac ca na vidyate
na vai sudro bhavec chudro
brahmano na ca brahmanah

 

"If the characteristics of a brahmana are found in a sudra and not in a brahmana, that sudra should not be known as a sudra, and that brahmana should not be known as a brahmana." (Mahabharata, Vana Parva, Chapter 180)

6. sudra-yonau hi jatasya
sad-gunanupatisthatah
arjave vartamanasya
brahmanyam abhijayate

"If a person born in a sudra family has developed the qualities of a brahmana, such as satya [truthfulness], sama [peacefulness], dama [self-control] and arjava [simplicity], he attains the exalted position of a brahmana." (Mahabharata, Vana Parva, Chapter 211)

 

7. sthito brahmana-dharmena
brahman yam upajiva ti
ksatriyo vatha vaisyo va
brahma-bhuyah sa gacchati
ebhis tu karmabhir devi
subhair acaritais tatha
sudro brahmanatam yati
vaisyah ksatriyatam vrajet
na yonir napi samskaro
na srutam na ca santatih
karanani dvijatvasya
vrttam eva tu karanam

"If one is factually situated in the occupation of a brahmana, he must be considered a brahmana, even if born of a ksatriya or vaisya family.
"O Devi, if even a sudra is actually engaged in the occupation and pure behavior of a brahmana, he becomes a brahmana. Moreover, a vaisya can become a ksatriya.
"Therefore, neither the source of one's birth, nor his reformation, nor his education is the criterion of a brahmana. The vrtta, or occupation, is the real standard by which one is known as a brahmana." (Mahabharata, Anusasana Parva, Chapter 163) 

 

 

Sources:

http://www.indiadivine.org/content/topic/1240895-reference-for-a-shloka/

http://www.hinduwisdom.info/Caste_System6.htm

Is it a muffler or a Hermes scarf?

This article was prompted by the recent news article where Arvind Kejriwal and his supporters have stoutly defended his flying first class as it was sponsored by his hosts.

Now all of us know that fortunately or unfortunately AAP seems to be the only party openly displaying funding details to the citizens of our country. However as this consistently leads to a holier-than-thou attitude among their supporters there are a few points to be made here.

1. AAP of all parties seems to be aware of the importance of self-promotion and branding, especially via new media. Today, for good or bad, perception is extremely important, if not everything. When one claims to be an ardent supporter of the common man it is also important to maintain perceptions. Remember Sarojini Naidu's famous statement that it was very expensive to maintain Mahatma Gandhi in poverty?

2. For a person who made a media spectacle by traveling in a crowded local train in Mumbai, this is in a way inexcusable. Even if the sponsors were willing to pay for business class a true espouser could have asked for an economy ticket and then asked the differential to be given as contribution to the party. Here Kejriwal seems to have kept personal comfort ahead of the larger picture. Deja vu? When he decided to quit the Delhi government?

3. Our leadership often comes up with lame excuses to cover up embarrassing disclosures. The claim that the dream is for every middle class Indian to be able to afford business class flying is as lame as the best our leadership have come up with. I am reminded of Swami Vivekananda talking about social reformation. To paraphrase him we should not pull down the upper classes to maintain societal equity, rather we should try to uplift the downtrodden. Kejriwal's justification seems to be a much lamer version of that.

All of this being said, especially today when black money is a hot topic, I truly wish our political class will open their books to outside scrutiny. It is true to an extent that there can be victimization of donors by political opponents. However I am sure most of us believe that more harm is done by not revealing who the donors are. Today we have two foreigners who have come forward to help us tackle the foreign-stashed black money issue. But are we ready to address the domestic black economy? How can we expect cleanliness outside if we do not put our own house in order?

A Reply to Shashi Tharoor

This post was prompted by this article, where Shashi Tharoor addresses India's newest voters.

However at the outset let me make two disclaimers/confessions. I am an admirer of Shashi Tharoor, for his literary genius and for what he has achieved in his life. Also till date due to various reasons I have not been able to vote. Even for the forthcoming elections by the time I could think of registering myself the date was past. However I felt I had to mention a few points when I saw the letter.

The letter is a not-so-subtle repeat of Rahul Gandhi's "Congress is secular, BJP is communal" rant. For all the erudition and passion Tharoor puts into it the letter boils down to this simple statement. He claims that on one side is a grouping which has carried forward the lofty ideals of our founding fathers. I would like to point out a few more things about this grouping.

1. Did not Mahatma Gandhi call for disbanding this grouping after independence was achieved saying its objective was fulfilled?

2. This is a grouping which has propagated nepotism and family promotion at the highest levels of the government, at the Prime Minister's level no less.

3. For all its ranting in favour of its "inclusiveness" this is a grouping which has promoted concentration of power and individual worship throughout its existence, at least after independence.

4. For all its ranting about being "secular" the perpetrators of certain riots when the then PM was killed have not been brought to book till date. In fact one of the accused almost got tickets to contest some time back.

5. Two of its Prime Ministers were killed because of groups that directly or indirectly were initially encouraged by them, one of them being in a foreign land.

6. This grouping is so hungry for power that it went ahead and dismembered a state without regard to the feelings of more than half (?) the population. As somebody recently remarked there has been more haste to divide the state than to pass the women's reservation bill.

7. This grouping claims to have brought in the RTI. However as an article in yesterday's ET says most government departments have not yet fulfilled their obligations as part of implementing the RTI. Will this grouping compliment itself on having brought in the legislation only? Will they not be responsible for its implementation also?

8. This grouping set an extra-constitutional body headed by a person who "sacrificed" the PM's post, thus giving up responsibility but not giving up power. Most of the significant decisions made by the present government were actually initiated by this extra-constitutional body, unless I am mistaken.

9. It is felt that the last 10 years have seen the most corrupt phase of our society.

 

This list can probably go on and on. However I hope I have made my point. In today's India I am not very sure any party can truly claim a holier-than-thou attitude!