By Shamsul Islam
13 June, 2013
Countercurrents.org
Gujarat Chief Minister and Hindutva icon
Narendra Modi, while inaugurating an all-India conference on livestock and
dairy development on June 11, 2013 in Gandhinagar, announced a nation-wide
campaign to collect small pieces of iron from farmers and use them to build a
‘Statue of Unity’ in memory of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, the first interior
minister of independent India in Nehru’s cabinet.
He announced, “On the day of Sardar Patel’s birth anniversary on
October 31, 2013, we will launch a nation-wide campaign, covering more than
five lakh villages throughout the country, to collect small pieces of iron of
any tool used by farmers from each village, that will be used in the building
of the statue.” This ‘Statue of Unity’ is to be the tallest statue on Earth:
the 182 metres (392 feet) tall statue of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel — the Iron
Man — will be built opposite the Sardar Sarovar Dam over the Narmada river in
south Gujarat.
Modi lamented the
fact that architect of modern India, “Sardar Patel brought the nation together.
But gradually his memories are fading away” and went on to declare that “to
reinvigorate his memory and as a fitting tribute to the Iron Man of India, we
are building this statue, which will be double in height than the Statue of
Liberty in New York.” He also reminded the audience that “Sardar Patel was also
a farmer who was instrumental in bringing farmers into the freedom struggle.”
This grandiose
project of Gujarat Chief Minister, Narendra Modi, who is an RSS whole-timer,
raises a few pertinent issues. He was inaugurating a national conference on
livestock and dairying, both of which are passing through a very critical phase
due to famine, corporatization of agricultural land and high costs. The
well-being of livestock and dairying is essentially connected with the
well-being of farmers. According to official data, in the last one decade, on
an average, one Indian farmer committed suicide every 40 minutes due to debt,
sub-standard seeds/manure, high costs and scarcity of water, to name only few
of the endless problems. In the same decade millions of head of cattle have
perished due to famine, shrinking pasture lands and handing over fertile lands
to business houses and builder mafias. Dairy products have become luxury items
beyond the reach of common Indians. India leads the world in having the largest
number of under-nourished children and women. Shockingly, Modi had no comments on
this worsening scenario.
Modi’s love for Sardar Patel is intriguing for many reasons. Patel was
a Congress leader who, inspired by Gandhi’s principle of non-violence, led a
great and very powerful movement of farmers at Bardoli taluka in 1928. This is known
as the Bardoli Satyagraha and the then pro-British English Press described it
as “Bolshevism in Bardoli” and Patel as its “Lenin.”
Patel was awarded
the title 'Sardar' after this heroic struggle. This peasants’ movement started
against the extortionate lagan imposed by the British rulers and landlords and
selling of large tracts of agricultural land to moneybags of Bombay. Sardar
Patel led the movement but he had devoted Congressmen/women workers, both
Hindus & Muslims, like Imam Saheb Abdul Kadir, Uttamchand Deepchand Shah,
Mohanlal Kameshwar Pandya, Bhaktiba Desai, Darbar Gopaldas Desai, Meethubehn
Petit, Jugatrambhai Dave, Surajbehn Mehta, Umar Sobani and Phoolchand Kavi, who
challenged the colonial masters and their henchmen at the ground level.
One important
fact to be noted is that the Hindu Mahasabha and the RSS, which existed during
this period, kept aloof from this historical struggle. Modi’s co-option of
Patel, who was a prominent Congress leader of the anti-British freedom struggle,
is part of a ploy of the Hindutva camp to be seen as part of the freedom
movement despite having betrayed it. This kind of co-option game is likely to
succeed, as the Congress as a party has become indifferent to its anti-colonial
legacy.
Dead persons do not speak, and Sardar Patel cannot appear to put
across the truth. However, contemporary documents show that Modi's and the
Hindutva camp's love for Sardar Patel is based on lies. Sardar Patel hated
Hindutva politics and was the person who imposed the first ban on the RSS. The
February 4, 1948 communique issued by the Home Ministry headed by Sardar Patel
banning the RSS was self-explanatory:
“In their resolution of February 2, 1948 the Government of India de
clared their determination to root out the forces of hate and violence that are
at work in our country and imperil the freedom of the Nation and darken her
fair name. In pursuance of this policy the Government of India have decided to
declare unlawful the RSS.”
The communique
went on to say that the ban on the RSS was imposed because
“Undesirable and
even dangerous activities have been carried on by members of the Sangh. It has
been found that in several parts of the country individual members of the RSS
have indulged in acts of violence involving arson, robbery, dacoity, and murder
and have collected illicit arms and ammunition. They have been found
circulating leaflets exhorting people to resort to terrorist methods, to
collect firearms, to create disaffection against the government and suborn the
police and the military.”
It was Sardar
Patel who, as Home Minister, did not hesitate in telling the then supremo of
the RSS, Guru Golwalkar, that his organization was responsible for killing
Gandhi and instigating violence. In a letter written to Golwalkar, dated 11
September 1948, Sardar Patel stated:
“Organizing the
Hindus and helping them is one thing but going in for revenge for its
sufferings on innocent and helpless men, women and children is quite another
thing… Apart from this, their opposition to the Congress, that too of such
virulence, disregarding all considerations of personality, decency or decorum,
created a kind of unrest among the people. All their speeches were full of
communal poison. It was not necessary to spread poison in order to enthuse the
Hindus and organize for their
protection. As a
final result of the poison, the country had to suffer the sacrifice of the
invaluable life of Gandhiji. Even an iota of the sympathy of the Government, or
of the people, no more remained for the RSS. In fact opposition grew.
Opposition turned more severe, when the RSS men expressed joy and distributed
sweets after Gandhiji’s death. Under these conditions it became inevitable for
the Government to take action against the RSS… Since then, over six months have
elapsed. We had hoped that after this lapse of time, with full and proper
consideration the RSS persons would come to the right path. But from the
reports that come to me, it is evident that attempts to put fresh life into
their same old activities are afoot.”
Sardar Patel continued hammering the fact that the Hindutva brigade
collectively was responsible for the murder of Gandhi. In a letter to Nehru
dated February 27, 1948, he wrote, “It was a fanatical wing of the Hindu
Mahasabha directly under Savarkar that hatched the conspiracy and saw it
through. It also appears that conspiracy was limited to some ten men… Of
course, his [Gandhiji’s] assassination was welcomed by those of the RSS and
Hindu Mahasabha who were strongly opposed to his way of thinking and to his
policy.”
Sardar Patel stressed the same fact in his letter to a prominent
leader of the Hindu Mahasabha, Shyama Prasad Mookerjee, on July 18, 1948: “As
regards the RSS and the Hindu Mahasabha, the case relating to Gandhiji’s murder
is sub-judice and I should not like to say anything about the participation of
the two organizations, but our reports do confirm that, as a result of the
activities of these two bodies, particularly the former, an atmosphere was
created in the country in which such a ghastly tragedy became possible. There
is no doubt in my mind that the extreme section of the Hindu Mahasabha was
involved in the conspiracy. The activities of the RSS constituted a clear
threat to the existence of Government and the State. Our reports show that
those activities, despite the ban, have not died down. Indeed, as time has
marched on, the RSS circles are becoming more defiant and are indulging in
their subversive activities in an increasing measure.”
Despite all these facts, Narendra Modi claims to love Sardar Patel. It
only shows that Modi has no qualms about resorting to deceits for selfish
gains. Sardar Patel is a ready-made heroic figure. Modi does not have to
manufacture him. He and the RSS have only to hide the fact that the man was
opposed to their organization and had acted against it, and then, by what can
only be called theft, proceed to make him one of their own. This defiance of
historical fact is characteristic of the strategy of the Hindutva camp.
Goebbels is dead, long live Modi.
[I am thankful to
Mr. Mukul Dube for inputs]
Shamsul Islam is
Associate Professor, Department of Political Science, Satyawati College,
University of Delhi. notoinjustice@gmail.com
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