Ramachandra Guha is India's foremost intellectual. His 'India After Gandhi' is a must for anyone interested in understanding the post-independence evolution of Indian politics, economy and society. Apart from being an erudite scholar, Guha is an ardent liberal and he wears his liberalism on his sleeve. So whenever he writes columns it pays to take notice.
His The Man who would rule India published in The Hindu is an interesting and thought provoking article which questions Dear Leader's suitability for becoming PM. Of course, technically anybody can aspire to be PM. But given the steady degradation of democratic institutions and principles in India, all right minded people should stay vigilant and hold up to thorough scrutiny the credentials of contenders for the PM post.
I used to think that the idea of Dear Leader being a contender for PM itself would be controversial and a non starter. But like arsenic poisoning the idea has seeped into the body politic. Love him or hate him, he is a master manipulator when it comes to PR. So now liberals are left with no choice but to engage with the idea on a serious level and try and knock down the man's credentials. I think Guha has made a good start punching holes in the Gujarat model as well as raising serious questions about the Dear Leader's commitment to democracy.
Of course, the usual foaming keyboard warriors have descended in full force on Hindu's message board (indeed the speed and volume of responses whenever there is an article on Dear Leader in any website is a site to behold; there does appear to be something fishy about such an 'organised' response). What was of interest to me more than such noise is to use such opinion pieces to learn how the idea of Dear Leader as PM is playing out. To be sure, there is a vocal minority supporting him , largely cancelled out by a minority opposing him. But the attitude of the silent majority in the middle is what matters. It is clear to me that absent a wave election, Dear Leader will not be able to become PM or serve as an effective one. And the silent majority will decide whether there is a wave or not. My own anecdotal experience (based on an unscientific sample size) is that silent majority have very short term memory. So, many of them will be reacting to the corruption scandals, government high handedness and economic slowdown rather than threats to communal harmony. Thus the Dear Leader does seem to have a fair shot at the coveted chair if he continues to project himself as the last action hero.
One can only hope that thoughtful views like Guha's resonates with the silent majority. India has been indebted to Gujarat for its freedom and unity. It will indeed be an unfortunate irony if the same state contributes to the collapse of democracy and secularism in India.
His The Man who would rule India published in The Hindu is an interesting and thought provoking article which questions Dear Leader's suitability for becoming PM. Of course, technically anybody can aspire to be PM. But given the steady degradation of democratic institutions and principles in India, all right minded people should stay vigilant and hold up to thorough scrutiny the credentials of contenders for the PM post.
I used to think that the idea of Dear Leader being a contender for PM itself would be controversial and a non starter. But like arsenic poisoning the idea has seeped into the body politic. Love him or hate him, he is a master manipulator when it comes to PR. So now liberals are left with no choice but to engage with the idea on a serious level and try and knock down the man's credentials. I think Guha has made a good start punching holes in the Gujarat model as well as raising serious questions about the Dear Leader's commitment to democracy.
Of course, the usual foaming keyboard warriors have descended in full force on Hindu's message board (indeed the speed and volume of responses whenever there is an article on Dear Leader in any website is a site to behold; there does appear to be something fishy about such an 'organised' response). What was of interest to me more than such noise is to use such opinion pieces to learn how the idea of Dear Leader as PM is playing out. To be sure, there is a vocal minority supporting him , largely cancelled out by a minority opposing him. But the attitude of the silent majority in the middle is what matters. It is clear to me that absent a wave election, Dear Leader will not be able to become PM or serve as an effective one. And the silent majority will decide whether there is a wave or not. My own anecdotal experience (based on an unscientific sample size) is that silent majority have very short term memory. So, many of them will be reacting to the corruption scandals, government high handedness and economic slowdown rather than threats to communal harmony. Thus the Dear Leader does seem to have a fair shot at the coveted chair if he continues to project himself as the last action hero.
One can only hope that thoughtful views like Guha's resonates with the silent majority. India has been indebted to Gujarat for its freedom and unity. It will indeed be an unfortunate irony if the same state contributes to the collapse of democracy and secularism in India.
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