BJP's cruel reaction to ex-serviceman's suicide is Modi's real #Sandesh2Soldiers
If there is grass, cattle will come to graze. This homily is true for politicians, too, not just for four-legged genteel animals.
If suicide as a form of protest becomes a public spectacle, politicians will obviously make a beeline for the site. People will construe that those who don’t gather to make a show of offering condolences, or prevent others from doing so, have either something to hide, or are morally responsible for the tragedy.
Don’t we remember how the Bharatiya Janata Party and Congress tried to milk the tragic suicide of Rajasthan farmer, Gajendra Singh, who hung himself from a tree in April 2015 while protesting alongside Aam Aadmi Party supporters against the Land Acquisition Bill?
Leaders of the government and spokespersons of the ruling party forgot this home truth on Wednesday, November 2. In a self-delusional response to the crisis, they thought that they would be able to get away by preventing Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi and Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal from from reaching Jantar Mantar and meeting the family of the deceased.
I don’t mind being in police custody, but why did police take his family in custody: Arvind Kejriwal on Ram Kishan Grewal suicide case pic.twitter.com/ixock5XkCw
— ANI (@ANI_news) November 3, 2016
To add to this miscalculation was Union minister General VK Singh, who not only scores a self-goal on every occasion, and no longer puts his foot in the mouth, but instead his entire right leg.
Reason for his suicide being reported is #OROP, don't know what his mental state was, need investigation: VK Singh on ex-serviceman suicide
— ANI (@ANI_news) November 2, 2016
If the idea appears too grotesque and an idiomatic violation to anyone, make no mistake, his words are no less hideous and out of sync. There are certain matters which are well known but have to be worded sensitively and, at times, not uttered.
There is no denying suicide is preceded by intense emotional convulsion and is obviously the result of mental imbalance. Quite often, even among protestors, the person who self-immolates or chooses other ways of ending life, is disturbed for a variety of reasons.
Anyone who makes such claims so close on the heels of the tragedy needs to have his own head examined.
Singh has been a politically liability since he was inducted into the party. Also, because he brings little to the BJP table, retaining him in the council of ministers defies logic and is akin to a cricket skipper continuing with an out-of-form batsman or retaining a bowler who throws nothing but juicy dollops.
Barely a few days ago, everyone within the BJP was praising Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the "brilliant" social media campaign - #Sandesh2Soldiers - that had celebrities racing against each other to tweet first and secure an endorsement from the premier. On Tuesday, the same hashtag was used to heap ridicule on the prime minister and his government.
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| Modi’s drive to project himself and his government as sole protectors of soldiers’ dignity lies in shambles. (Photo: PTI) |
After the latest developments, Modi’s drive to project himself and his government as sole protectors of soldiers’ dignity lies in shambles.
The shambolic manner in which the police, initially, and then the political leadership reacted to the developments makes the government open to the charge that it is not interested in soldiers’ welfare. Instead, the BJP government is only engrossed in deriving political benefits from the armed forces by making tall claims.
The memory of Modi’s claims regarding OROP had barely begun to settle (he makes statements so often that previous ones get soon forgotten) that this tragedy has come to haunt him.
People are now openly asking if his claims were indeed true; why ex-servicemen are still protesting at Jantar Mantar? Surely, the issue of OROP is much more complex than what the government is making it out to be.
Delhi: Ex-paramilitary personnel protesting over the #OROP scheme. pic.twitter.com/5OtaccVL1r
— ANI (@ANI_news) November 3, 2016
Allowing the protest to linger is a case of gross miscalculation and crass insensitivity. It is true that there are different strands and factions among the protesters, and at least one spearhead has political ambitions. But this should have redoubled government and BJP efforts to withdraw the agitation and begin quiet parleys with the disaffected lot.
The failure of government is to immediately foresee likely reaction from political adversaries. A reaction plan should have been drawn up and relayed to police personnel deployed at the site. Clearly, the government’s response to emergencies has been found wanting. This was first seen in the alleged police encounter in which SIMI activists were killed, and now in regard to the death in the capital.
The fact that the death involved an ex-serviceman - a community that cuts across all religious communities, castes and communities - made it easier for the opposition parties to jump into the arena and try making for political capital.
The issue is not politically contentious like the one involving SIMI activists because taking up the cause of the deceased risks earning the ire of the majority community.
Moreover, the former soldier chose Delhi to be the proscenium of his final act. Whether one likes this or not, the number of OB vans for live coverage is numerous and outnumber those in state capitals and the hinterland.
The BJP will now have to play catch up with Rahul Gandhi and Arvind Kejriwal having taken the lead with competitive championing of the cause. For the BJP this spells trouble, as it will undermine its campaign plank in Uttar Pradesh.
Now, whenever Modi claims "main desh naheen mitne doonga" people can turn and ask him that it would be better if he saves soldiers from meeting a gory end in peace time and ensure their dignity.
The BJP may contest this formulation, and even rightly so. But then, politics is all about perceptions and this is a round that the party has lost.
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