By R. Chandra Prakash

K.B. Ganapathy’s Abracadabra titled “Modi must put India House in order before he leaves Office” in Star of Mysore dated Nov. 19 and 20, 2024, is a frank and bold narration of concurrent history. It points to the root causes for the predicament the sacred geography of Bharat is confronted with today. The problems created by Jawaharlal Nehru and Indira Gandhi have set the challenges before the patriot Narendra Modi.

However, the Abracadabra gives an impression as if the rot began with the regime of Indira Gandhi. This rejoinder will try to substantiate the fact that it all started long before Indira Gandhi, even before Independence, with Nehru, and, of course, during the entire period of his  Prime Ministership.

Many of us, born during the forties and fifties, grew up highly influenced by the ‘charismatic personality’ aura of Jawaharlal Nehru. His books, mainly The Discovery of India (1946) and Letters from a Father to his Daughter (1929) shaped our  idea of nationalism;  political and  economic policies during our growing up period. His personal links with the British leaders during the independence struggle was portrayed as extraordinary political capital. November 14, his birthday, became “Chacha Nehru  Day,” a National celebration among the children. Thereby, seeding among the young minds loyalty to the Nehru clan.

Gandhiji’s Partiality

However, now our generation has realised as to  how Mahatma Gandhi’s endearment of Motilal Nehru, Jawaharlal Nehru and the entire Nehru family resulted in political turns and twists, many of them very diabolic indeed, in the national landscape of pre-independence history. Despite proven political skills, academics and commanding contributions during the Bardoli Satyagraha (an Indian nationalist and farmers’ movement against the colonial government’s increased taxing of farmers) and Salt Satyagraha (an act of non-violent civil disobedience in colonial India) by Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, Gandhiji not only sidelined him but gave special importance to Nehru.

Similarly, even though Subhas Chandra Bose won the election of the President of Indian National Congress (INC) Working Committee with a thumping majority, defeating Nehru during the crucial pre-Second World War, Gandhiji prevailed upon Bose to give way to Nehru. Even Dr. B.R. Ambedkar and many other capable Congress leaders did not get their due place in the national scene because of Gandhiji’s open partiality towards Nehru. Interestingly, Gandhiji had resigned from the INC long before that and was not even its primary member!

It is such open non-democratic and whimsical manoeuvres by Gandhiji which made Nehru a very tall national figure in political history. And this laid the foundation to the dynastic politics, imprinting of fake ‘Gandhi’ and Gandhian philosophy. And it is here that we find the root cause of post-independence pseudo-secularism and fake socialism which have caused immense damage to the Sanatana Dharma. Had Gandhiji followed democratic principles and encouraged all those competent nationalists, Nehru would never have been the first Prime Minister of independent India and the story of Bharat would have been entirely different.

Constitution and Nehru-era

It is ironic that the fake-Gandhi Congress today is crying hoarse that Modi is going to make fundamental changes into the ‘sacred’ Constitution, a fake copy of which was being flaunted in the recently held ‘Save Constitution’ rally. KBG’s Abracadabra in two parts has narrated how Indira Gandhi made a mince-meat of this ‘sacred Constitution.’ However, one cannot forget the fundamental damages  inflicted upon the Constitution during the Nehru-era.

The very first amendment was carried out in June 1951, within one-and-a-half year of its implementation! This  single amendment consisted of modifications of Articles: 15, 19, 85, 87, 174, 176, 341, 342, 372 and 376. And it inserted Articles 31A and 31B as also Schedule 9.

And Schedule 9 introduced laws  which encroached upon the property rights, freedom of speech and equality before law! Between 1951 and May 1964, during Nehru’s period, as many as 16 amendments affecting multiple and far- reaching changes into the Constitution were made.  Yet, today the Congress has the temerity to allege that Modi will change the Constitution, when in reality no such endeavour is visible.

Dr. B.R. Ambedkar’s Views on Nehru

Dr. B.R. Ambedkar not only played a major role in framing the Constitution but he was also a Law Minister in Nehru’s first  Cabinet. His academic acumen and patriotism are matters of great admiration. He had to resign from the Cabinet within a short time on a matter of principle and also due to his                               differences with Nehru’s policies and attitude.

Dr. Ambedkar’s resignation speech delivered on Oct.10, 1951, “exposes Nehru’s facade as a democrat who believed in debate and dissent… exposes Nehru as a ‘liar’ and habitual breaker of his word, a Prime Minister with zero integrity, ability and competence but one who was endowed with extraordinary manipulative skills and was adept at backstabbing his own colleagues and friends.” [Source: Team Dharma Dispatch — How Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru Ousted Dr. B.R. Ambedkar from the Cabinet : The Full Story].

These words might have been considered highly personal views of Dr. Ambedkar who might have been hurt then, but the happenings of the Nehru-era now substantiate many of  his observations.

Nehru: Originator of Dynastic Politics

In the recent past, hundreds of books and articles have appeared exposing faux pas by Nehru. Nehru’s handling of Kashmir issue, his unexplainable faith and love for Abdullah dynasty, stealthily injecting Article 370 and 35A into the Constitution to provide Special Status to Kashmir, his China policy and many more, are now fully explained national disasters. The damage caused is not restricted to Kashmir. Entire socio-political fabric of the nation and the Sanatana Dharma have been adversely affected.

Appointment of his own sister Vijayalakshmi Pandit to the United Nations as Permanent Representative, and above all, designating his daughter Indira Gandhi, first as his hostess and gradually encouraging her to take active part in the government and party affairs, fully expose his distrust in democratic values. In 1959, Indira Gandhi was made the President of INC and soon she weaponised the Constitution and dismissed the Constitutionally elected Communist government of E.M.S. Namboodiripad. Hence, it is Nehru who laid the foundation of dynastic politics   in the country.

Dynastic Politics and Corruption: The Real National Challenges

If Indira Gandhi was the first beneficiary of the dynastic politics, she also became a role model for many more dynastic political parties to emerge on the political landscape of the country. In Karnataka, it is H.D. Deve Gowda’s JD(S); in Tamil Nadu, it is M. Karunanidhi’s DMK; in Uttar Pradesh apart from many, it is Mulayam Singh Yadav’s SP; in Bihar, it is Lalu Prasad Yadav’s RJD; in Maharashtra, it is Bal Thackeray’s Shiv Sena and Sharad Pawar’s NCP; in West Bengal, it is Mamata Banerjee’s TMC and many more. Interestingly, most of them are off-shoots of post-1968 Indira’s National Congress!

These dynastic political parties have a very narrow geographical control, mostly based on caste, regionalism and, of course, money power generated by corruption! Even, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which has had its origin in nationalistic and patriotic origin in its Jan Sangh-era, has had to face factionalism and charges of corruption. If in Karnataka it was B.S. Yediyurappa, then in Uttar Pradesh, Kalyan Singh.

Unfortunately, in a torn political mandate, for which mostly these dynastic parties are responsible, these  dynasties became the King-makers! Because, today Indian politics is no more a competition of principles or dogmas, it is the power of caste and cash.

It is their damaging impact on the national scenario which is a real challenge a patriot and an honest leader, Modi faces. However, Ganapathy is spot on when he quotes Ronald Reagan: “Problem is not the Problems, but it is the Solution”.

Note: …and yet Nehru was an honourable man who had even “offered” to resign during the Chinese debacle. This is in contrast to his daughter Indira Gandhi in 1975. Yes, Nehru brought his daughter to the dynasty by making her the President of All India Congress Party in 1959. But dynasty is inevitable in all pursuits of life. A farmer’s son becoming a farmer, a doctor’s son a doctor and the same phenomenon can be seen in defence forces, government service and in business or industry. Anyway, dynasty is possible only if there is merit in the successor.

However, Nehru must be given his due credit for keeping a poor India of 1947 united and ENABLING it to make economic progress by setting up many public sector units like Steel Plants, HMT, Indian Telephone Industries (ITI), HAL etc. Even wrist-watches used to be imported but HMT started manufacturing watches also. The CSIR is also Nehru’s brainchild. He was a visionary for his time but unfortunately compromised the majority Hindu interest for the advantage of the minority. One may call it vote bank politics.—KBG