‘Need to counter narratives of anti-national forces’

Mysore/Mysuru: “Veer Savarkar dedicated his life to countering propaganda during his struggle and while imprisoned in the Cellular Jail in Andaman. Today, there is an urgent need to challenge the false narratives and propaganda spread by anti-national forces and Urban Naxals,” said Yuva Brigade Founder and social activist Chakravarty Sulibele.

He made these remarks after receiving the ‘Veer Savarkar Samman Award – 2024,’ constituted by Savarkar Pratishtana, from noted littérateur and Padma Bhushan awardee Dr. S.L. Bhyrappa during the 141st Vinayak Damodar Savarkar (Veer Savarkar) Jayanti celebrations at Kalamandira in the city last evening.

“Countries like China, Pakistan and the United States of America will not directly attack India. Instead, they will wage a propaganda war by spreading narratives that suit their agenda. If a lie is repeated a hundred times, people tend to believe it as true,” he said.

Citing the examples of the Israel-Gaza conflict and the Ukraine-Russia war, Sulibele stated that the Left-liberals in America have initiated propaganda suggesting that Gaza (Hamas) will defeat Israel and Ukraine will defeat Russia. However, both Russia and Israel are actually strong.

“For decades, there has been systematic propaganda that only people with white skin are superior, while those with dark skin and people from the East are inferior. This is another form of propaganda. In India, the Left-liberals, the Congress, and their allies spread a narrative during the first phase of the Lok Sabha elections that Prime Minister Narendra Modi would lose the elections. Their noise intensified in the second phase, but by the fourth phase, they were scrambling to save Raebareli for Rahul Gandhi,” he said.

Congress’ powerful tool

“Propaganda is a powerful tool handed over to the Congress by the British. Historian Ramachandra Guha recently wrote a newspaper article claiming that Modi is anti-democratic. For people like Guha, Indira Gandhi, who imposed the draconian Emergency, is an ideal leader, while Modi, who has been striving for India and its people, is labelled an autocrat. Narratives are crafted in India and propagandists receive funding from foreign nations. That’s how the ecosystem works,” Sulibele said.

“It is the same narrative that claimed India is ranked 111th out of 125 countries in the Global Hunger Index. Although the Union Government contested India’s performance, citing flawed methodology, the narrative was set and India was portrayed as worse than Pakistan, Afghanistan, Haiti and 12 sub-Saharan countries. Can you believe this? This is how propaganda is crafted to suit the interests of divisive forces. People must be aware of such narratives. Awareness is the only way to defeat them,” he added.

Divisive forces

“Karnataka’s current Ministers and one particular MP have openly discussed dividing India into North and South. This is creating significant tension. In this country, while there are no Naxal activities in villages, Urban Naxal activities have increased. Urban Naxalism is being systematically introduced as a thought process in the colleges of Mysuru, with similar incidents occurring in Mangaluru. The youth are being targeted in these areas. The youth must fight against this systematic imposition of Urban Naxalism,” he said.

Bharat Ratna

In his remarks, Dr. Bhyrappa expressed regret that the late Seer of Siddaganga Mutt, Sri Shivakumara Swamiji, has not been honoured with the Bharat Ratna. He emphasised that the revered figure, often referred to as the ‘Walking God,’ played a pivotal role in providing free food, shelter and education to the weaker sections of society through various charitable institutions associated with the Mutt.

Dr. Bhyrappa highlighted Swamiji’s unwavering commitment to the principles of ‘Thrividha Dasoha’ — ‘Anna’ (food), ‘Akshara’ (education) and ‘Ashraya’ (shelter) — for all, without discrimination based on caste.

He firmly advocated for Bharat Ratna posthumously to Sri Shivakumara Swamiji, stating that such recognition would significantly enhance the prestige of the award.

Mark of respect

As a mark of respect to Saraswati Samman Dr. Bhyrappa, Chakravarty Sulibele made the noted littérateur sit on the chair while he (Sulibele) knelt on the ground to receive the award.

Sulibele received a commemorative plaque and a cash award of Rs. 1 lakh. As a noble gesture, Sulibele announced that he would donate the money to a Goshala to help maintain the bovine animals.

The Kalamandira premises were jam-packed with hundreds of people and tight security was provided by the Police.

Savarkar Pratishtana President Dr. S. Yashaswini and Dr. N. Chandrashekar of Aditya Adhikari Hospital were present on the dais.

MLA T.S. Srivatsa, former MLA L. Nagendra, former Mayor Shivakumar, and others were also in attendance.