The views of certain individuals would make the average India think that after NDA government with Prime Minister Modi at helm, came to power in May, 2014, Intolerance and oppression has only increased in India. These people are so convinced that there is rising intolerance in the country, that they view any other opinion on this subject as Sanghi/Internet Hindu/RSS propaganda or pure nonsense.
One is made to think that Intolerance was never present in India, that India has always been a bastion of Liberalism and Free speech. The reality is actually far from different, for example, in a recent interview Niti Aayog’s member and a renowned economist Bibek Debroy shared one of his experience on the tolerant India, in that interview he said “In 2004, Loveesh Bhandari and I (Bibek Debroy) did a study on economic freedom rating of states. Gujarat was number one. In 2005, municipal elections were being held in Gujarat and a newspaper carried a front page story, ‘Congress think tank ranks Modi’s Gujarat as number one’, and all hell broke loose. I got a note from Mrs Gandhi saying anything that the Rajiv Gandhi Institute publishes henceforth be politically vetted. I said this is not acceptable to me. I resigned”. This is not the only time Mr Bibek Debroy was a victim of Intolerance to a different opinion other than the left, Bibek Debroy was afterwards thrown out of Arjun Sengupta Commission and then out of the remaining taskforce of the former planning commission.
The whole Intellectual space of India has been occupied by the Left for far too long, with the right wing BJP rising to power in May, 2014. This strong hold of the Left of India’s intellectual space is being gradually weakened by the BJP. BJP coming to power derails the whole gravy train, with BJP it’s Right wing allies trying to install more right winger people in research, literary and educational institutions, its upsets the whole Leftists ecosystem. So leftists are actually fighting for their very livelihood. Left does not fear when the Congress party is in power, because Congress isn’t an ideology, not anymore anyways. It is a party of power hungry opportunists with no ideology whatsoever, who just want to hold on to power who work only for their personnel interests and don’t give a two hoots about where and what direction the country is headed.
Where was this Outrage when the great (Pun intended) congress party was ruling India? In the UPA’s India there were no protest whatsoever from the intellectual brigade, things like rape of women, Communal riots, daylight murders, loot, policy paralysis, by congress. Heads of our soldiers were chopped off and the Defence minister stated in Parliament that ‘terrorists in Pakistan army’s uniform had come and killed the jawans’, why didn’t Sonia Gandhi go to president and say this is gross incompetence? Where was the outrage then?
Where were these Intellectuals during the massive strikes supported by the left to further their own interests, during India against corruption? There was even a section of Intellectuals that was saying that these protests were holding the government hostage!!!
The common man and women in India does not care about these dramas, however, it does impact India’s image on the world stage and projects India as a very intolerant country ruled by an extremist, but hey as long as the Leftists can score brownie points out of this who cares? BJP along with its right wing partners needs to create an alternative ecosystem which can counter this false propaganda spread by the Left to further its own interests.