Priyanka Gandhi Vadra has lately been in hyper active mode in the political arena. After she was placed on the sidelines in order to allow the Congress Yuvraj to move in, these elections have driven her to public contact again to bolster the flagging fortunes of Congress. Aptly so, as she is far more charismatic than Rahul Gandhi who would stand no chance at all should they ever be on the opposing sides. It is not something impossible. It has happened before in the ruling family of INC. Well known spats between Indira Priyadarshini and her aunt Vijay Lakshmi Pandit, the falling from grace of Maneka, the ongoing war of words launched by Priyanka against Varun are but some samples of what can happen. Nothing is permanent, especially in politics. Besides the utterances of the British foreign Secretary Milliband during his travels in Indian desitutes's homes and the entire circus at discovering by both Rahul and Milliband what everyone with his feet on the Indian soil anyhow knows, nay, grows up knowing, are proof that not only rahul wasted his time with the foreign emissary, he also showed him the soft underbelly of India instead of putting our best foot forward, and failed miserably to influence his anti - India viewpoints. He was so inept that not only he failed in all this, he failed even to restrain Milliband till he left Indian shores. Rahul couldn't muster the courage to even counter Milliband utterances during their travels together. Priyanka decidedly would have done better. interestingly, if India is as it actually is, the rulers must accept the blame for it. Let's not forget that the Nehru-Gandhi dynasty has ruled the nation for most of the period after independence, including the rule of Manmohan Sing who is widely understood to be a puppet prime minister with the real strings of power in the hands of Sonia Gandhi. Rahul certainly does not seem to be the material to run the nation. No doubt he may eventually be able to do so what with the number games and rampant horse trading that goes on in Indian Politics. One doesn't have to be popular or elected to Lok Sabha to become a prime minster. One doesn't have to have a mandate in his favour. We have had our share of Charan Singhs, Deve Gowdas et al. Mulayam Singh was once at a hair's breadth from becoming PM through the cunning machinations of the Late Harkishan Singh Surjeet.
These are merely some of the counterpoints that came to my mind while trying to look at what Priyanka is doing. Priyanka's overdrive is without much substance. She recently advised Varun to read Gita. Gita was propounded in the battle field. What does she want him to learn? Various Yogas like Bhakti, Jnana, Sankhya etc.? The sceintific theory of creation proposed by Lord Krishna? The need to destroy the 'adhrma' even if it meant to annihilate the 'adharmis' who could even be the next of kin? I think she has taken some lessons (but none on the underlying philosophy) from it and is out to annihilate Varun politically notwithstanding he is family like Duryodhan was to Yudhishthir. The stark difference however is that this time she is against Dharma and her only Dharma is power to Nehru-Gandhis. Perhaps she needs to also learn the message of love, the permanence of Karma, the true nature of spirit and spirituality from the holy book. But she is a Buddhist according to a recent issue of Outlook. It is not necessary for her to learn it all from Gita. But it is also not necessary for her to preach it to others.
More recently, she retorted Modi's "Congress is an 180 years old woman" by asking if she (Priyanka herself) looks like an old lady. She doesn't! Even when she will look like one she would get the same polite answer if she posed the same question to decent citizens - that she doesn't. But the question it raises is - Is she the Congress?
I am sadly reminded of the arrogance of the dynasty in always believing that they were above the organisation they belonged, and, in fact that they were as big as the nation. It is widely understood that Mr. Nehru felt that he alone could run the country - a very arrogant belief that only he could bask in. We all remember the infamous Congress slogan "Indira is India, India is Indira." This was extreme arrogance for any person of any stature to equate oneself with the Nation. Are we experiencing the same streak of arrogance? Is Priayanka Congress that she asked the question? Or, is the Congress just Priyanka?
These are merely some of the counterpoints that came to my mind while trying to look at what Priyanka is doing. Priyanka's overdrive is without much substance. She recently advised Varun to read Gita. Gita was propounded in the battle field. What does she want him to learn? Various Yogas like Bhakti, Jnana, Sankhya etc.? The sceintific theory of creation proposed by Lord Krishna? The need to destroy the 'adhrma' even if it meant to annihilate the 'adharmis' who could even be the next of kin? I think she has taken some lessons (but none on the underlying philosophy) from it and is out to annihilate Varun politically notwithstanding he is family like Duryodhan was to Yudhishthir. The stark difference however is that this time she is against Dharma and her only Dharma is power to Nehru-Gandhis. Perhaps she needs to also learn the message of love, the permanence of Karma, the true nature of spirit and spirituality from the holy book. But she is a Buddhist according to a recent issue of Outlook. It is not necessary for her to learn it all from Gita. But it is also not necessary for her to preach it to others.
More recently, she retorted Modi's "Congress is an 180 years old woman" by asking if she (Priyanka herself) looks like an old lady. She doesn't! Even when she will look like one she would get the same polite answer if she posed the same question to decent citizens - that she doesn't. But the question it raises is - Is she the Congress?
I am sadly reminded of the arrogance of the dynasty in always believing that they were above the organisation they belonged, and, in fact that they were as big as the nation. It is widely understood that Mr. Nehru felt that he alone could run the country - a very arrogant belief that only he could bask in. We all remember the infamous Congress slogan "Indira is India, India is Indira." This was extreme arrogance for any person of any stature to equate oneself with the Nation. Are we experiencing the same streak of arrogance? Is Priayanka Congress that she asked the question? Or, is the Congress just Priyanka?
interesting, well-said!
ReplyDeleteinteresting, well-said!
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