IT’S ALL GOD’S WISH!

MAY 23, 2024
By Aravind Bhatikar

THINGS that seem impossible cease to be so when they happen. None of the previous 14 prime ministers of independent India, during the last 76 years, have made any absurd and ridiculous statements during their public appearances. We might have thought that it is impossible for any prime minister to make bizarre, crazy and insane statements from public platforms. With Narendra Modi taking over as the prime minister of India in 2014 what seemed hereto impossible has been happening with amazing regularity.
Rahul Gandhi said that there should be a caste and economic census in the country which will “X-Ray” Indian society and help formulate economic policies for carrying out an equitable distribution of wealth and assets.
Narendra Modi twisted Rajiv Gandhi’s statement and publicly warned Indian voters that the Indian National Congress would enter people’s houses with X-Ray machines, record their assets and distribute those assets to others.
Did we not assume all this, that it was impossible for any prime minister of India to make such a ludicrous statement? Well, the impossible has happened.
Narendra Modi, in an election rally in Rajasthan, warned that the Congress would forcibly take away the “mangalsutra” of Hindu women and hand these over to “infiltrators” and “those who produce more children.” Modi was ostensibly referring to Muslims as “infiltrators” and “those who produce more children.”
Did we not assume all this, that it was impossible for any prime minister of India to make such weird, outlandish statements? Well, the impossible has happened.
Narendra Modi publicly alleged that if Rahul Gandhi is voted to power he would put a “Babri lock on Shri Ram Temple in Ayodhya.”
Did we not assume all this that it was impossible for any prime minister of India to make such eccentric statements? Well, the impossible has happened.
Narendra Modi warned Indian voters that if Rahul Gandhi and Akhilesh Yadav were voted to power, they would pull down the Shri Ram Temple in Ayodhya with a bulldozer.
Did we not assume all this that it was impossible for any prime minister of India to make such wild statements? Well, the impossible has happened.
Champat Rai, the General Secretary of Shri Ram Mandir Trust, publicly claimed that Narendra Modi is an incarnation of Lord Vishnu.
Have we not assumed all this that it is impossible for anybody to elevate an Indian politician to the status of a God? Well, the impossible has happened.
Have we not assumed all this that human beings can be devotees of gods and not vice-versa? Have we not assumed that it is impossible for any sane Indian to claim that Lord Jagannath of Puri is a devotee of Narendra Modi? Well, the impossible has happened. A spokesperson of the Bharatiya Janata Party made it happen.
Have we not assumed all this that the Election Commission of India (ECI) would be conducting a free and fair Lok Sabha election? Have we not assumed that the Election Commission would take quick action against all politicians who violate the election code of conduct and who incite communal hatred and violence? Have we not assumed that it is impossible for the prime minister of India to give hate speeches during an election campaign without attracting penal action? Well, the impossible has happened.
Have we not assumed all this that the Election Commission of India would promptly attend to all complaints made by opposition political parties during an election? Have we not assumed all this that it is impossible for the Election Commission to close its eyes, ears and mouth during the process of election and in the phase of complaints of large scale violations of code of conduct? Well, the impossible is happening.
The five phases of the Lok Sabha election are over. The impossible is happening with shocking regularity. Have we not been assuming that a disciplined and honest counting process will culminate in a free and fair election? Have we not assumed that it is impossible to carry out large scale manipulation and cheating in the counting process? Well, will the impossible continue to remain so on June 4?
Can WE, THE PEOPLE do whatever is possible to ensure that the counting of votes and declaration of results is correct? Can WE, THE PEOPLE ensure that the Election Commission keeps its eyes, ears and mouth open and does its duty to protect our democracy?