Of 58 MPs and MLAs accused of hate speech, 27 belong to BJP – the poison must be stopped from spreading
As many as 58 MPs and MLAs in the country have cases of hate speech against them. Almost half of them – 27 – belong to the BJP.
These include 10 MPs and 17 MLAs from various states, says a report by Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR), compiled by analysing candidates’ election affidavits. ADR is a non-governmental organisation which works in the area of electoral and political reforms.
The fact, worrying in itself, needs to be seen in the context of other developments to get at the bigger, more alarming picture: Hate speeches are increasing, and it is turning India into a tinderbox. This polarisation largely benefits only one party electorally – the BJP. The state, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi himself, is doing nothing to stop hate-mongers, and is in fact shielding them. Lastly, emboldened saffron foot-soldiers are scaring the saner voices into silence, thus hijacking the public discourse.
In the past week alone
On April 26, reports emerged that the BJP government in Uttar Pradesh started the process of dropping cases of hate speech against Sadhvi Prachi, two BJP MPs and three BJP MLAs. These hate speeches were linked to the deadly 2013 Muzaffarnagar riots and the Shamli communal clashes, and dropping of cases means the leaders, who many believe incited the violence, will not even face trial.
A week before this, NDTV had reported that instances of hate speech went up by 500 per cent in the four years of the Narendra Modi government.
On April 22, the PM asked his party lawmakers to temper their speech, but his main concern was with the party getting bad press. He said leaders should avoid “giving masala to the media”. In doing so the PM emboldened the errant leaders making hate speeches appear like the work of sensational media coverage, ignoring the hatred such comments are borne out of and spread among people.
Meanwhile, according to the latest report by Paris media watchdog Reporters Sans Frontieres (RSF), India has fallen two ranks on the World Press Freedom Index, from 136th to 138th rank among 180 countries.
The watchdog has criticised PM Modi directly: “In India (down two at 138th), hate speech targeting journalists is shared and amplified on social networks, often by troll armies in Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s pay,” it says.
Fruits of hate
Hate speech by politicians is condemnable on various levels – to take a short-cut to victory, they are ready to poison minds and risk loss of lives. Such speeches brainwash people to not care about leaders’ performance, and instead choose them for their identity.
Leaders from all political parties have used hate speeches, but the difference between the BJP and others in the ADR report is telling. Among MPs accused of inflammatory speeches, 10 are from BJP, while the other seven are from seven different parties.
Among the MLAs, 17 are from the BJP. The next highest number is five, from regional parties like the TRS and the AIMIM, nowhere comparable with the BJP in terms of influence or might.
When coupled with the BJP’s recent poll victories, and the immense power it commands as the party ruling the Centre and most states with an absolute majority, this difference becomes starker.
A look at cases of communal clashes in the recent past shows a clear link with the BJP – after the Kasganj riot, the local MP Rajveer Singh said the violence was caused by Muslims attacking Hindus for carrying the tri-colour and chanting Vande Mataram.
The Ram Navami violence in both Bihar and Bengal saw BJP leaders make incendiary speeches before and after the flare-ups.
The men accused of the Bhima Koregaon violence in Maharashtra have saffron connections. The caste clashes in UP's Saharanpur were sparked during a rally led by BJP MP Raghav Lakhanpal.
The fruits of this hate-mongering are clear: Incidents of communal violence have shot up. According to government data, 2017 saw 822 communal incidents in the country, which killed 111 people and injured 2,384. The figures are the highest since 2014. Of the states, four have a BJP government, and the fifth, Karnataka, is witnessing a high-stakes battle in the run-up to Assembly election in May.
Fractured polity fractures lives
Apart from actual clashes, hate speeches promote violence of another kind – the systematic otherisation of particular communities, of making them feel unwelcome, threatened, in their own homeland.
Hate speeches delineate an “adversary” – and the vilified community can then never feel safe under such leaders and among people who voted them to power, impinging upon the right to equality the Constitution guarantees them.
When such speeches are made by leaders and not condemned by the prime minister, it legitimises and normalises hate to appalling proportions – where those accused of torturing and raping children are aggressively defended, where something as banal as hailing a cab becomes a communal act.
Politicians, by shielding and actually encouraging hate-mongers, are gifting us a very dangerous world. It is time voters realise that getting swayed by such rhetoric benefits parties, but severely harms people.