I Worry Tower!

31 May 19

Yesterday we saw clearly a change of guard, clearest ever signal of attendees at the PM swearing in representing the new ‘elite’ of India. An occasion for rising above the fray, above party politics was soured by the present of supposedly/allegedly slain BJP workers’ next of kin, only from West Bengal, which has been identified by the BJP as their probably next conquest, after their attempt at something similar failed with respect to Odisha. Remember Mr Baijayant ‘Jay’ Panda, the erudite scholarly MP from BJD had been taken from that party to the BJP, and the singular pitch of the redoubtable Mr Naveen Patnaik has been his managing to get 6 of his 7 lady candidates to the Lok Sabha, including one 68 year old debutant Pramila Bisoyi from Aska, and youngest MP ever at 25 years and 11 months Chandran Murmu from Keonjhar!
So may be the BJP is trying different strokes, a US State of the Nation type moment inviting its key supporters and families of their slain workers. Ms Mamata Banerjee was in a quandary, for attending would mean willy nilly acknowledging the political violence in the state she governed, and not attending would at this moment not really cost her much politically. If she does not follow up, by meeting these families as CM of her state and ordering enquiries into the demises of their kin, she would find it difficult to counter the steady steam of propaganda that would push her further from her voters, as not just a ‘Muslim’ ‘Money Minded’ ‘Madcap’ but now as ‘mass murderer’!
When Pawan Chamling of Sikkim lost in his attempt to win a sixth term, he paved the way for Naveen to have a chance as ending up beating his record as the longest serving CM. Mr Modi has had three full terms as Gujarat CM, winning elections in 2002, 2007, 2012, and holding office from 07 October 2001 to 22 May 2014, and now in all probability PM till May 2024, would be considered as longest serving chief executive as a politician in India, if he went beyond 2024 and Mr Naveen retired from active politics in that year.
In all this time, each of these political honchos first came about as overthrowing an existing elitist cabal. Yet without digressing into specifics, since their tenures are too close at hand for scrutiny in an unbiased manner, it would suffice to say, that they too lean on some persons, some who are more equal than others in their cabinets, their coteries and in their constituents!
It is the nature of power that we must make these allowances. If RK Dhawan grew to such stature as to be Ms Gandhi’s ManFriday, we have Mr N Mishra for whom an amendment was made to existing law to allow him to be Mr Modi’s Principal Secretary at the PMO. Is it the need for ‘safe hands’ or ‘willing ears’ or ‘shoulders that the leader can lean on’, that creates this need for such centres of power around leadership? Is it inescapable, for the way power operates, which psychologists would term as ‘alter ego’, ‘soul companion’? Krishna and Arjuna were described as ‘Saka’ an endearing companionship, a bond that was for Arjuna above the bond he had for his Pandavas and for Krishna what he had for Balaram. Subhadra escaped the quagmire dragnet by being Arjuna’s spouse as well as his sister!The Blind Kuru King, Dhirithirashtra was to have Sanjaya and Vidura as his eyes and ears, not that he was always to listen to their inputs, for his heart was controlled by Gandhari and Duryodhana. One of my elders used to say that power is debilitating, that is why Vyasa made all the Kings of Hastinapura debilitated or handicapped, with one or other severe shortcoming, from Shantanu to Dhirithirashtra, through Chitrangada, Vichitravirya, and Pandu! So is power a poison as claimed rhetorically by Mr Rahul Gandhi?
Power is a magnet that draws attention of the most un-useful kind. You could be persuaded, bombarded, and manipulated by others to yield and wield power in a particular way, is what the Itihasa-Purana informs us. How boons are used, how arguments are placed, laced with their inherent prejudices, in a no holds barred jostling for power. In world history, Ottoman, Roman, Greek and more are all filled with similar vein of struggles that we can say the most underrated quote is this- uneasy lies the head that wears the crown!
So new elite who avowedly disparage the Lutyens and Khan Market elites are visible at the till! You saw them clearly, some visibly empowered with berths in the Union Ministries, some in the shadows, prominently whispering the ears of power or offering theirs to oracles themselves! The 2019 cabinet of Mr Modi is his imprint, just as Mr Amit Shah has forever altered the DNA of the BJP as a political party. This is the biggest change in the five years gone by, now consolidated by Mr Modi’s stellar mandate!
India’s underbelly and her deep state will realign or resurrect along these new power points, engaging with the new elites that have come to occupy the corridors of Delhi. Ivory towers are always getting erected, and occupied, however loathsome those without may view them! It is the nature of power. Accept it, deal with it, as India’s timeless broker traditions with long cherished stratagems, have, those meddling middlemen who were called “sahukar” and in whose name our Government is colloquially called ‘Sarkar’!