Bure din for Indian democracy

My letter refers to the article ‘’ It is raining cuss words in Indian politics ( dt 25, January). Truly, of late, profanity in politics has touched a new low. Gutter language is now the sole preserve of street smart politicos across India. Otherwise, UP MLA Sadhana Singh would not have breached all the bounds of propriety by describing the BSP leader Mayawati as one ‘’ worse than a eunuch.’’

In fact, the nadir of national politics was reached as early as 2004 for which both the national parties need to be taken to task. At an election rally in Patna in 2004, Modi had said that ‘’the Congress symbol used to be the cow and calf and people used to say ‘’’gai ( Indira Gandhi) and ‘’vaccharado’’ Sanjay Gandhi) were contesting. ‘’Now, farmers tell me a hybrid calf has come to contest the elections.’’ In October 2012, he targeted the Congress leader Shashi Tharoor at an election rally in Mandi, Himachal Pradesh with the indecorous comment ‘’ Wah kya girl friend hai.

Apne kabhi dekha hai 50 crore ki girl friend—wow, what a girl friend have you ever seen a 50-crore –girl friend?’’
In November 2012, Mani Aiyar called Modi ‘’Paani purush—man of water’’and not a ‘’ loh purush’’ as extolled to the skies by the BJP loyalists. He described him derisively as ‘’ Ravana and ‘’’ asatyaka saudagar-a merchant of lies.’ Gujarat Congress head made the nasty comment that a ‘’’ monkey cannot challenge a tiger like the former PM Manmohan Singh. Modi retorted by recasting himself as ‘’ lord Hanuman.’’

In july 2013, Modi invited sharp criticism by comparing Gujarat riot victims to ‘’ Kuttey ka pilla gaadi ke neeche aa jaye’’—‘’ a puppy coming under a car wheel.’’ BJP’s loyalist Meenakshi Lekhi lagged behind none by terming Congress leader Kurshid a’’ cockroach’’ which would survive Pakistan’s nuclear attacks. In June 2013, Jairam Ramesh , former rural development minister compared Modi with Bhasmasur for having ‘’consumed’’LK Advani.

In April 2014, Congress leader Beni Prasad Verma called Modi a ‘’gunda ( goon) of RSS While Azam Khan called Modi ‘’ an elder brother of a puppy’’ and ‘’ assassin of humanity’’ When Rahul Gandhi said that nobody would come charging on horseback to solve India’s problems, a spokesman of the Congress commented that Rahul Gandhi was not referring to Modi by making the sarcastic comment ‘’Else, he would have said buffalo, not horse. Read between the lines , Buffalo is the mount of Yamadharma raj, the Hindu god of death.

In the same year, Mani Sankar Aiyar made a personal attack on Modi with the inappropriate comment ‘’Narendra Modi will never become Prime Minister of India but if he wants to distribute tea here, we will find a place for him.’’ But his remark boomeranged on the Congress party and cost it dearly. During the run up to the Chattisgarh polls in the same year, Modi called the Congress symbol ‘’Khooni panja( bloody claw) and ‘’Zalim Haath’’(cruel hand) while Sonia Gandhi during her campaign in Karnataka said ‘’ the BJP does ‘’ Zeher ki kheti ( reaps poison from fields) In November 2016, Modi asked people to give him 50 days to successfully implement demonetisation failing which people can punish him on the streets. Ahmed Patel,a Congress leader reminded people of Modi’s promise in January 2017 with the acerbic comment ‘’It is time people picked a street corner and punished the PM.’’

Again in February 2017, Modi sarcastically said that ‘’ Manmohan Singh knows the art of bathing with the rain court on’’ obviously declaring in the public that corruption charges did not stick to Singh but he was corrupt nonetheless. Rahul Gandhi mocked at Modi in 2017 by calling the Goods and Services Tax ‘’Gabbar Singh Tax.

Modi countered with the comment that ‘’ those who oppose GST have Grand Stupid Thought. In the same year, Youth Congress mouthpiece published a picture of Modi mispronouncing ‘’’meme’’ in Hindi and being taken to task for his mispronunciation by no less than Theresa May , PM of UK and advising him to ‘’sell tea’’. Modil countered saying ‘’he sold tea but not the nation.’’

In recent times Vikram Saini, BJP MLA from Khatauli attacked the veteran actor Naseeruddin Shah for his critical references to the climate of intolerance with a no-holds –barred comment ‘’ my personal view is that those who say that they feel unsafe and threatened in India should be bombed. Give me a ministry and I will bomb such people, not even will be spared.’’

It appears that as elections are round the corner, Indian politicos will unleash a torrent of vilification, and character-assassination of their political adversaries little remembering that the Indian masses , though illiterate and poor, are capable of sitting in judgement on the hypocrisy of the contesting candidates and sizing up their character, integrity and record of service to society. One fondly hopes that both the PM and the leaders of opposition will sit together and promise the people of this nation that they will discuss issues of national importance on the eve of elections and stop vilifying one another for a bagful of votes. Are achhe din ahead?

- SM Kompella, Kakinada