People's Democracy

EDITORIAL

On SC Indictment Of Modi Govt

THE Narendra Modi government in Gujarat has earned the unprecedented notoriety of being the only state government in independent India's history that has come into confrontation with all constitutional authorities.  First, it was the Election Commission and then the statutory National Human Rights Commission and the National Minorities Commission, and now the Supreme Court itself.

And what must be considered as the worst indictment the apex court has ever made against any state government come the observations made against the Gujarat government. On the acquittal of all those involved in the gruesome Best Bakery case, the Supreme Court observed that if the state government cannot protect the innocent and punish the guilty, it must rather quit. The appeal filed by the state government in the High Court was termed by the Supreme Court as being a mockery of justice!

Any self-respecting chief minister, after such a severe indictment by the Supreme Court, would have accepted the court's advice and quit. But this would be too much to expect from anybody in the BJP-led NDA, least of all from Narendra Modi. The state-sponsored genocide that he presided over has confirmed his status as a person devoid of all scruples and values. The RSS/BJP et al spare no effort to portray themselves as the devout Ram bhaktas. One fear that every devout person has is that of devine retribution for the wrongs that he commits. The RSS/BJP octopus has no such fears since it only has the pretense of being devout while committing the worst of crimes in the name of God!

From the other end of the country, Orissa, has come the conviction of Dara Singh & Co who were responsible for the brutal torching to death of Christian missionary Graham Staines and his children.  Papers report that the protest bandh call given by the RSS brigade against this judgement ended in a flop.  Clearly, the people are tired of the emotional bashing they receive from these communal forces who can only thrive on disharmony and conflict. 

Notwithstanding this, the RSS octopus has decided to up the ante on the Ayodhya issue. The VHP has announced the launching of a national movement from October 15. It has demanded a central legislation for permitting the construction of the temple at a disputed site, parading the ASI report which is yet to be approved by the court. In a belligerent move, they have stated that after "resolving" the Ayodhya matter, they shall take up the disputes at Kashi and Mathura. The BJP, far from disapproving of such a course where people take law into their own hands while the judiciary is seized of the matter, is in fact a party to this entire exercise in inflaming, once again, communal passions and tensions.

Clearly, the RSS/BJP has come to the conclusion that there is no single area where it can enlist people's political support. Its five years in office have generated mounting discontent amongst the people due to its style of (mis) governance and anti-people policies. The only option it sees for itself is to arose communal passions and hopes that like in Gujarat last year, it will be able to gain consequently in the elections. For the sake of their electoral benefit, the country and the people are going to be subjected, once again, to communal turmoil that will have far reaching disastrous consequences. 

This cannot be allowed.  The diabolical efforts being made by the RSS/BJP et al must be resisted for the sake of safeguarding India, i.e., Bharat.