Narendra Modi vs Sardar Patel

But the sham is not new. It has been going on for some time now, as Modi has tried to acquire a more secular (or at least, less communal) image. First he stopped talking of Ayodhya (leaving the dirty job to his trusted Amit Shah). Then he went on to say that toilets came before temples (so what if he was copying Jairam Ramesh). Then he invited Muslims to attend his meetings, even doling out burquas and skull caps (so what if he didn’t wear one himself). And now, he is willing – no, make that desperate – to even fete the man who couldn’t tolerate the RSS. Give him some more time, and Modi may even be willing to get himself branded “Mian Modi”! If only all this could make him – somehow, oh Ram, please somehow – make him the PM!

Let’s be clear. Patel had extreme dislike for the RSS. He actually banned it in 1948. Here are some statements made by him in letters which are freely available: On Mahatma Gandhi’s murder: “There is no doubt in my mind the extreme section of the Hindu Mahasbha was involved in this conspiracy”. On the RSS: The activities of the RSS constituted a clear threat to the existence of the Government and the State. His famous “poison” statement: The speeches of the Sangh leaders are poisonous. It is as a result of this venom that Mahatma Gandhi has been assassinated. And shockingly again: The followers of the Sangh have celebrated Gandhiji’s assassination by distributing sweets. And then speaking in the Lok Sabha in August 1950: You must remember that when the Father of the Nation was murdered, it was by a group of people who belonged to that organisation [Hindu Mahasabha]. I am ready to prove to anybody that there was a group of people there who were determined to take his life. That aside, Patel’s views on communal politics were well known.

So where does that leave the RSS? Patel was the bête noire of the RSS. And here, Modi is trying to embrace him. We know Modi is a clever politician. And as a true politician, he doesn’t mind doing anything that gets him the moolah (in this case the PM’s chair). He knows the RSS is a liability, and he is keen to dispense off with it (the Congress is already making 2014 a fight between itself and the RSS). But at the same time, he also knows that he is nobody without the RSS. He has to keep the RSS in good humor. The question is just how far he can push it. A little too far, and he could end up like Advani when he praised Jinnah.

http://blogs.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/the-real-truth/entry/desperate-to-become-pm-modi-even-willing-to-embrace-sardar-patel

Reviving Patel was a master stroke by Modi. Hopefully, some Bengalis will propagate the image of Bose.

CONmen have been ignoring the legacy of these two men (and also, until recently, Ambedkar) and made the Gandui family demi-gods.

Sikular Fukularism Hatao!

Amid the ongoing battle over Sardar Patel's legacy, Congress leader Digvijay Singh on Thursday took on BJP's prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi, saying India's first Home Minister was humility personified and the Gujarat Chief Minister was arrogance personified.

Underlining the differences between the personalities of Patel and Modi, Singh said on microblogging website Twitter: "Sardar was known for his simplicity and humility Wore Khadi all his life. Modi poses with Designer clothes and Branded Glasses. Sardar-Humility personified! Modi- Conceit and Arrogance personified Sardar - United India Modi- Divides NDA BJP and Hindus and Minorities."

"Sardar Patel organised Farmers against the British and was the Father of Cooperative Movement in Gujarat. Under Modi both not on his agenda," he added....


Information and Broadcasting Minister Manish Tewari had earlier this week accused the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Rashtriya Swayam Sewak Sangh (RSS) of appropriating the legacy of India's first Home Minister.

"On 9/11/1948, Sardar Patel wrote a letter to Golwalkarji. And, in that letter, he said that the communal poison which had been spread by the RSS was responsible for the sacrifice of Gandhiji. As a student of political history, it has always intrigued me that the RSS, BJP has been attempting unsuccessfully to appropriate the legacy of Sardar Patel," Tewari told media here.

"I wanted to ask the BJP or their newly-anointed pretender that do they endorse, or agree with the views of Sardar Patel with regard to the RSS. If not, as the chief minister of Gujarat and possibly as the 'Swayamsevak' within history bears testimony to the fact that those who do not have a history of their own, try to appropriate the history of others," he added.

http://www.business-standard.com/article/news-ani/sardar-patel-wore-khadi-modi-poses-with-designer-clothes-digvijay-singh-113103100253_1.html