Narendra Modi unfit to be PM of India: Ramachandra Guha

by Guest Sat Feb 09, 2013 9:09 am

Mr. Modi’s desire to dominate is manifest in his manner of speaking. Social scientists don’t tend to analyse auditory affect, but you have only to listen to the Gujarat Chief Minister for 15 minutes to know that this is a man who will push aside anyone who comes in his way. The intent of his voice is to force his audience into following him on account of fearing him.

The proclamation of his physical masculinity is not the sole example of Mr. Modi’s authoritarianism. Like all political bullies he despises free speech and artistic creativity — thus he has banned books and films he thinks Gujaratis should not read or watch (characteristically, without reading or viewing these books and films himself). He has harassed independent-minded writers, intellectuals and artists (leading to the veritable destruction of India’s greatest school of art, in Vadodara). His refusal to the spontaneous offer of a skull cap during his so-called ‘Sadbhavana Yatra,’ while read as an example of his congenital communalism, could also be seen as illustrating his congenital arrogance.

The most revealing public display of Mr. Modi’s character, however, may have been a yoga camp he once held for the IAS officers of his State. They all lined up in front of him — DMs, DCs, Secretaries, Under-Secretaries, of various sizes, shapes, ages, and genders — and followed the exercise routine he had laid down for them. Utthak-baithak, utthak-baithak, 10 or perhaps 20 times, before a diverting Surya Namaskar was thrown in by the Master.

I do not know whether that yoga camp was held again (it was supposed to be an annual show), and do not know either how Mr. Modi appears to these IAS officers when they confront him one-on-one. But that the event was held, and that the Chief Minister’s office sought proudly to broadcast it to the world, tells us rather more than we would rather wish to know about this man who wishes to rule India.

To be sure, Mr. Modi is not the only authoritarian around in Indian politics. Mamata Banerjee, J. Jayalalithaa, and Mayawati (when she is Chief Minister) also run their States in a somewhat overbearing manner. Naveen Patnaik and Nitish Kumar are intolerant of criticism too. However, the authoritarianism of these other State leaders is erratic and capricious, not focused or dogmatic. This, and the further fact that Mr. Modi has made his national ambitions far more explicit, makes them lesser devils when it comes to the future of our country.

http://www.thehindu.com/opinion/lead/the-man-who-would-rule-india/article4390286.ece?homepage=true

by Guest Sat Feb 09, 2013 9:11 am

As a sociologist who treats the aggregate data of economists with scepticism, I myself do not believe that Gujarat is the best developed State in the country. Shortly after Mr. Modi was sworn in for his third full term, I travelled through Saurashtra, whose polluted and arid lands spoke of a hard grind for survival. In the towns, water, sewage, road and transport facilities were in a pathetic state; in the countryside, the scarcity of natural resources was apparent, as pastoralists walked miles and miles in search of stubble for their goats. Both hard numbers and on-the-ground soundings suggest that in terms of social and economic development, Gujarat is better than average, but not among the best. In a lifetime of travel through the States of the Union, my sense is that Kerala, Himachal Pradesh and (despite the corruption) Tamil Nadu are the three States which provide a dignified living to a decent percentage of their population.

by Jeremiah Mburuburu Sat Feb 09, 2013 11:35 am

i agree with guha's comparison of modi with mrs gandhi. thanks for posting the article.

by Rishi Sat Feb 09, 2013 11:58 am

People who despise Indira Gandhi or Modi for their authoritarian ways are the ones likely to marvel at Singapore for its economic growth and order.

If Indira Gandhi had been still dictatorial but allowed the Indian economy to be free, the same people would not be complaining. The main cause of the Sikh separatism was the acute unemployment among Sikh youth. And it was the direct result of Indira Gandhi's socialist policies.

by truthbetold Sat Feb 09, 2013 12:39 pm

Rishi,
jm was probablythinking of the current ruler mrs. Sonia gandhi. She does tolerate dissent, she makes people wait for appointments, she decides who the cm of an elected state assembly and in many cases selects an unelected chamcha as cm.
Indian political class has two distinct categories , one is chamcha/slave class and the other is mass leader turned dictator. Dictator class includes mulayam, laloo, badal, karunanidhi to name a few more.
Guha in his anxiousness to create a negative image of modi, distorts facts by projecting gujarat as nazi germany. Modi is bad but not because he is some kind of monster but because his rss thinking was monstrous.

by Marathadi-Saamiyaar Sat Feb 09, 2013 12:52 pm

Jeremiah Mburuburu wrote:i agree with guha's comparison of modi with mrs gandhi. thanks for posting the article.

I agree.... both are in the same boat. However, in the tough Indian politics, it only the authoritarians who survive. No matter who the PM is only an authoratarian will get that position. i like Madam Mohan Singh, but he is too subservient to Sonia mata and too professorial., and now #3 in the power line up.

I attribute this to the Indians having been ruled by kings and emperors and colonial masters for 1000 years, and they see the PM as a de facto emperor, expecting authoritarianism.

Only silver lining - Modi, Mamata, Mayaway and JJ are all "officially" single and cannot pass on the emperorship to his family.

Only Hegde and Kamaraj were the last decent CMs.

by Rishi Sat Feb 09, 2013 1:25 pm

Only Hegde and Kamaraj were the last decent CMs.

Completely agree.

It seems Kamaraj's mother lived in a house which did not have a decent toilet. She asked him to build one for her. He told her no. He said "Today you ask for a toilet. Tomorrow you will ask for a new house."

by Vakavaka Pakapaka Sat Feb 09, 2013 2:16 pm

Rishi wrote:Only Hegde and Kamaraj were the last decent CMs.

Completely agree.

It seems Kamaraj's mother lived in a house which did not have a decent toilet. She asked him to build one for her. He told her no. He said "Today you ask for a toilet. Tomorrow you will ask for a new house."

So, did Kamaraj do what villagers do whenever he visited his mother and village?

by Marathadi-Saamiyaar Sat Feb 09, 2013 2:32 pm

Vakavaka Pakapaka wrote:
Rishi wrote:Only Hegde and Kamaraj were the last decent CMs.

Completely agree.

It seems Kamaraj's mother lived in a house which did not have a decent toilet. She asked him to build one for her. He told her no. He said "Today you ask for a toilet. Tomorrow you will ask for a new house."

So, did Kamaraj do what villagers do whenever he visited his mother and village?

Who knows might have done just like they did.

I remember seeing Parvathy Krishnan - ex Communist MP and sister of Mohan Kumaramangalam (Google up) - shopping at a small novelty store and my dad chatted with her for a good 10 to 15 min, while I ate some chocolate standing nearby. She was then a current MP and there was not a single assistant or cadre nearby.

Imagine approaching a MP or even a city counselor these days.

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