Rahul Gandhi hugging two old women during Bharat Jodo Yatr.
Rahul Gandhi hugging two old women during Bharat Jodo YatraRahul Gandhi with a little girl, and on the right, helps a girl with her shoes.
“Bharat Jodo Yatra is a timely initiative to bring Indians together. It does not matter who took the lead, but it is the right thing to do. India is a great nation and will remain one, and a few transitory individuals cannot wipe out its 5000-year-old history. It is foolish to think Hinduism is in danger; who are you to save it? Sanatana Dharma does not need greedy defenders to take advantage of it. Its eternal values of pluralism and coexistence will outlive all the small men that have come and gone.”
Bharat Jodo Yatra is in the interests of Indians to sustain democratic institutions and democracy in India. The freedom that we have had for 75 years is gradually waning.
By Mike Ghouse
Are we not happy when we function together, work together, study together, eat and live together with fewer conflicts and tensions? Aren’t we most pleased with each other in a family, neighbors, and community if we do not hate each other?
We were born to live in harmony. God has created everything in balance except our interactions with each other. Look around you. Look at the Sun and its planets arranged to go in circles with precision. The earth goes around the Sun in 24 hours, and it has been doing this for millions of years; not only that, it tilts at certain angles to give us the needed seasons of sustenance. Our body is programmed to function together, provided we feed it right. We can do the right thing with our freedom and live in peace or screw it up and live in tension. What creates disharmony? It is our interactions with each other that create discord, conflicts, and divisiveness in society. It is taking a toll on all Indians. Most Indians live in tension; the threateners and the threatened feel insecure. It has to change.
Bharat Jodo Yatra is a timely initiative to bring Indians together. It does not matter who took the lead, but it is the right thing to do. India is a great nation and will remain one, and a few transitory individuals cannot wipe out its 5000-year-old history. It is foolish to think Hinduism is in danger; who are you to save it? Sanatana Dharma does not need greedy defenders to take advantage of it. Its eternal values of pluralism and coexistence will outlive all the small men that have come and gone.
We are all Indians and created equal, and no one is more privileged than the other. Together as Indians, we are Hindus, Dalits, Muslims, Sikhs, Christians, Jains, Atheists, Nastiks, Buddhists, Bahá’í, Tribals, Jews, Bo’s, Qandharis, Bakarwals inclusive of every group of Indians. Anyone who breathes the air of the land, drinks the water, eats the food, and or chooses to be an Indian is an Indian.
We should not allow any evil force to pit one Indian against another. If patriotic, they must work for an exemplary. We should ask them to join us and build a cohesive India where authentic sab ka Saath, sab ka vikaas ho. Sab ka Samman ho, aur sab ko nyay mile.
The divisive Hindu-Muslim rhetoric has got to go. The politicians are the ones who gained from this nonsense. Did the average Indian gain anything from it other than being fooled?
We have to figure out how to co-exist with the least friction. It is in your interests, my interest, and everyone’s interest to have justice, which gives birth to sustainable peace and prosperity. Our motherland is sliding down on scales of poverty, economic growth, and social cohesion, and we must put brakes to this slide.
We need Bharat to be mukt from bad governance. Good governance is being accountable to the public. The top leader must hold press conferences, answer questions in the parliament, and fearlessly put himself to give difficult interviews to the pressmen like Karan Thapar, Ravish Kumar, and Arfa Khanum. True democracy is when the leaders are open to criticism and welcome it instead of harassing the critics. If Modi had children, he would have enriched them. However, he has enhanced his friend’s wealth by giving away profitable public businesses to them without offering bids to the public.
Modi’s lust for power and control is shameful and is worse than any dynastic rule. He chooses to remain silent when the nation is burning with hate and calls for genocide are made relentlessly. All this corruption and destruction has to come to an end.
Bharat Jodo Yatra reminds me of the Bharat Choro Yatra initiated by Mahatma Gandhi in 1942. Its demand was an immediate end to British rule over India. It was known as the Quit India Movement that led the British to run away.
Bharat Jodo Yatra is in the interests of Indians to sustain democratic institutions and democracy in India. The freedom that we have had for 75 years is gradually waning.
Watching the Bharat Jodo Yatra and Rahul Gandhi meeting ordinary Indians on the walk is a joy. No one other than Mahatma Gandhi was this fearless. These men are born once every 100 years to restore Dharma in society. Rahul has no fear even though he lost his grandmother and father to terrorism. He has set the movement to bring Indians together, and the momentum will pick up on its own. The Indians are reasonable people, and harmony is in their DNA even though momentarily they are lost following the pied piper.
After Mahatma Gandhi’s abrupt death, Indians were looking for another Mahatma who was unselfish and did not lust for power but cared for fellow Indians to live in harmony.
We may have that Mahatma reincarnated in Rahul and we wish great success to the yatra to bring Indians together to common good.
Jai Hind!
(Mike Ghouse is the CEO and founder of the Center for Pluralism and an interfaith wedding Officiant. He offers pluralistic solutions on issues of the day to the media, policymakers, and others. More about him at www.TheGhouseDiary.com)
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3 Comments
PART – III
Actually, Rahul is a gem of a person compared to your other stalwarts and only he could be your true representative. But only due to the conspiracies of the BJP IT Cell, most people think he is a Joker. So do follow Rahul Gandhi and make him your leader. Anyway, you do not have any choice or option. You have to pin your hopes on the Gandhi family only. Ignore the people who think it is your bankruptcy. Always hope that the next time some miracle will happen. After all, no one accuses Congressmen of committing a sin of learning from the experience.
And that was the crux of my posting. I was foolishly hoping that Indian democracy needs a strong and high-calibre opposition party that could operate above vote bank politics and stop romance with the anti-national elements. But if the leadership of Rahul Gandhi is all that you have to offer, better to resign to our fate.
There are just hundreds of funny clips of Rahul and jokes and all are not the brainchild of the BJP IT Cell. At least he will keep you humoured and cheer you up when you feel gloomy after every election. Carry on your Caravan and futile journey. Rahul is at least useful and a valuable asset and a vote catcher – if not for Congress then at least for his opponents. Not for nothing BJP prays that Congress follows Rahul Gandhi. Wish you all the best.
Please understand, people do not vote for Modi because he is flawless. I repeat, Modi wins not because he is flawless but because there is no viable alternative. The alternatives offered viz Rahul, Mamta, Maya, Akhilesh, KCR, Stalin, Nitish, Lalu, or Kejriwal are just not acceptable on an all-India basis. If you again harp on ‘some more comparison’ but offer the same deck of jokers reshuffled, again and again, Modi will continue his streak of winning election after election. I wonder why Advisers, Media, and well-wishers of Congress do not understand such a simple and ‘hidden-in-plain-sight’ fact really stumps me. No wonder the poor chap continues to commit the same blunders decade after decade. ‘Yatha Raja, Tatha Praja’.
In the interest of Indian democracy that needs a strong opposition party, come up with someone credible with an All India appeal that goes beyond vote-bank politics, and has scruples and courage to shun anti-national elements. The present deck of jokers with so many skeletons in their vaults is all easily blackmailed by black psy-ops sections of foreign intelligence agencies. Hence they have to take the line dictated to them the same as Pakistan or the USA even when they know it is politically suicidal in an awakened, nationalistic society. Otherwise, it does not explain why they would take such an openly anti-national, anti-majority stance in a democracy.
People must consider the alternative credible and in the interest of the nation. The first thing to do to enhance credibility is to distance from totally discredited tea-biscuit media. Present media has a reverse-Midas touch. Whatever they try to promote or touch is reduced to dust. Rahul is just one example. By default any one promoted and supported by big media houses is considered not in the interest of India. Such is their credibility now. To really promote anyone, stop being seen promoting them.
Your pious hopes will have a reality check in 2024. It seems that the BJP has learned the tricks and ropes of realpolitik from the British who used to choose weak, stupid and starry-eyed people with impractical ideas about the world as well as themselves to represent their opponents. Such people like Nehru and Gandhi were used as the ‘whistle’ of the pressure cooker to take out the steam of discontent but did nothing harmful to the system. It was mainly tokenism with which gullible masses were kept busy. Those who could really do harm were sent to Kala Paani (Andaman) to serve 50 years in jail, while Gandhi was deliberately popped up as Sarkari ‘Mahatma’ and treated with kid gloves. Gandhi was sent to five star ‘prison’ called Aga khan Palace with a monthly pension. It tells you a real story of what the British thought of these people.
BJP is using the same stratagem while enjoying the ‘leadership’ material of Rahul Gandhi. More than the Congress supporters, Rahul has supporters in the BJP for the same reason Gandhi was chosen as the ‘adversary’ by the British. It is pathetic that people who are not happy with the present dispensation have no choice other than buffoons like Rahul Gandhi. It shows only the bankruptcy of the opposition parties.
We will see the impact of ‘Bharat jodo’ yatra where “Bharat tere tukde honge Inshalla” gang partners and people tell anecdotes and stories which make a good copy till the soap opera is tested on the ground in 2024 for the acid test of election.
PART – III
Actually, Rahul is a gem of a person compared to your other stalwarts and only he could be your true representative. But only due to the conspiracies of the BJP IT Cell, most people think he is a Joker. So do follow Rahul Gandhi and make him your leader. Anyway, you do not have any choice or option. You have to pin your hopes on the Gandhi family only. Ignore the people who think it is your bankruptcy. Always hope that the next time some miracle will happen. After all, no one accuses Congressmen of committing a sin of learning from the experience.
And that was the crux of my posting. I was foolishly hoping that Indian democracy needs a strong and high-calibre opposition party that could operate above vote bank politics and stop romance with the anti-national elements. But if the leadership of Rahul Gandhi is all that you have to offer, better to resign to our fate.
There are just hundreds of funny clips of Rahul and jokes and all are not the brainchild of the BJP IT Cell. At least he will keep you humoured and cheer you up when you feel gloomy after every election. Carry on your Caravan and futile journey. Rahul is at least useful and a valuable asset and a vote catcher – if not for Congress then at least for his opponents. Not for nothing BJP prays that Congress follows Rahul Gandhi. Wish you all the best.
PART-II
Please understand, people do not vote for Modi because he is flawless. I repeat, Modi wins not because he is flawless but because there is no viable alternative. The alternatives offered viz Rahul, Mamta, Maya, Akhilesh, KCR, Stalin, Nitish, Lalu, or Kejriwal are just not acceptable on an all-India basis. If you again harp on ‘some more comparison’ but offer the same deck of jokers reshuffled, again and again, Modi will continue his streak of winning election after election. I wonder why Advisers, Media, and well-wishers of Congress do not understand such a simple and ‘hidden-in-plain-sight’ fact really stumps me. No wonder the poor chap continues to commit the same blunders decade after decade. ‘Yatha Raja, Tatha Praja’.
In the interest of Indian democracy that needs a strong opposition party, come up with someone credible with an All India appeal that goes beyond vote-bank politics, and has scruples and courage to shun anti-national elements. The present deck of jokers with so many skeletons in their vaults is all easily blackmailed by black psy-ops sections of foreign intelligence agencies. Hence they have to take the line dictated to them the same as Pakistan or the USA even when they know it is politically suicidal in an awakened, nationalistic society. Otherwise, it does not explain why they would take such an openly anti-national, anti-majority stance in a democracy.
People must consider the alternative credible and in the interest of the nation. The first thing to do to enhance credibility is to distance from totally discredited tea-biscuit media. Present media has a reverse-Midas touch. Whatever they try to promote or touch is reduced to dust. Rahul is just one example. By default any one promoted and supported by big media houses is considered not in the interest of India. Such is their credibility now. To really promote anyone, stop being seen promoting them.
Your pious hopes will have a reality check in 2024. It seems that the BJP has learned the tricks and ropes of realpolitik from the British who used to choose weak, stupid and starry-eyed people with impractical ideas about the world as well as themselves to represent their opponents. Such people like Nehru and Gandhi were used as the ‘whistle’ of the pressure cooker to take out the steam of discontent but did nothing harmful to the system. It was mainly tokenism with which gullible masses were kept busy. Those who could really do harm were sent to Kala Paani (Andaman) to serve 50 years in jail, while Gandhi was deliberately popped up as Sarkari ‘Mahatma’ and treated with kid gloves. Gandhi was sent to five star ‘prison’ called Aga khan Palace with a monthly pension. It tells you a real story of what the British thought of these people.
BJP is using the same stratagem while enjoying the ‘leadership’ material of Rahul Gandhi. More than the Congress supporters, Rahul has supporters in the BJP for the same reason Gandhi was chosen as the ‘adversary’ by the British. It is pathetic that people who are not happy with the present dispensation have no choice other than buffoons like Rahul Gandhi. It shows only the bankruptcy of the opposition parties.
We will see the impact of ‘Bharat jodo’ yatra where “Bharat tere tukde honge Inshalla” gang partners and people tell anecdotes and stories which make a good copy till the soap opera is tested on the ground in 2024 for the acid test of election.