The Modi Paradox: Development Leader or Communal Firebrand?

By Mukesh Devrari

The BBC’s film on PM Narendra Modi repeated the allegations that have been making rounds for the last two decades. The Gujarat riots took place in 2002. The riots started after the Godhra train was burned by Muslims, killing 59 Hindus. The Hindu mobs attacked Muslims with a sense of impunity, and Narendra Modi, as the Chief Minister, watched the carnage for three days. The first allegation against him was that he did nothing to stop people from killing each other. Rather, right-wing media and low-ranking office bearers of his party justified the riots as a reaction to the attack on the Godhra train carrying Hindu pilgrims returning from Ayodhya.

The BBC’s documentary also mentioned that the Home Minister of Gujarat, Hiren Pandya, was killed in dubious circumstances by a bullet wound at some place and later his body was placed inside his car. It indirectly suggested that Modi was behind the killing. The documentary also alleged that two police officers who spoke against the conduct of PM Modi were subsequently punished by the state government for their courage. One of the IPS officers, Sanjiv Bhatt, was even jailed on charges of custodial death from three decades back. The documentary also mentioned high-profile activist Teesta Setalvad, who campaigned to press charges against Narendra Modi for decades.

All this information is in the public domain. The courts have exonerated Narendra Modi, as no substantial evidence was found to claim that Modi asked police officers not to stop the rioting in Gujarat after the attack on the Sabarmati Express train in Godhra. It would be fair to suggest that the Gujarat government, with the help of the Union government, could have stopped the enraged Hindu mobs from attacking Muslims after 59 Hindus were killed by Muslim arsonists. If a crime is committed by a group of people, it does not mean the government should allow communities to take revenge by attacking other religious groups for a crime not committed by them. Unfortunately, almost 1,000 people died and 2,500 were injured in the riots. Cable TV was blocked, and only news channels were relayed in Gujarat to incite people.

The central leadership of the BJP could have removed Narendra Modi; instead, it allowed Modi to announce mid-term elections. And Modi was elected to power. The BBC documentary starts with the ideology of the RSS and highlights the hate it preaches against Muslims. Though the top office bearers of the outfit remain careful in their public statements, RSS workers move to other affiliated outfits to openly spread poison against Muslims and look for issues to create communal polarization, as it increases the electoral prospects of the BJP. There is some truth in the fact that Modi used the Godhra tragedy as a political opportunity to establish himself as a Hindu leader who is not afraid of using violence against Muslims. And Modi has never lost an election after 2002.

The most controversial part of the documentary was the inquiry conducted by the British Commission, which sent a team of diplomats to Gujarat to find out what had happened. Perhaps this is the first time in independent India that the British High Commission sent a team to conduct an inquiry on Indian soil, and it tells a lot about the nature of India as a nation. It highlights the general ambiance of transparency and openness, and the available freedom even to foreigners to scrutinize the functioning and conduct of our elected government. It would be difficult to find any parallel where a sovereign state allows a foreign power to conduct an inquiry on its soil.

The former Foreign Minister of Britain, Jack Straw, justified the inquiry and argued that many Gujarati Muslims live in Britain, and on the request of his constituents, the then High Commissioner of Britain in India set up an inquiry committee and sent them to Gujarat to prepare a report. That report concluded that Modi had asked the local police officers not to intervene in the rioting, and Hindu extremists could not have inflicted so much damage without the tacit support of the state government. It is important to note that India was colonized and ruled by the British for almost two hundred years, and a handful of Britishers ruled the vast Indian subcontinent by pushing Hindus and Muslims against each other.

Impact of BBC’s Reports on Modi

Indian society and politicians are very sensitive to how they are perceived abroad, particularly in the West. The behavior of Indian society is the result of the inferiority complex and humiliation India faced for centuries due to foreign invasions, first by Muslims from the North and later by the Britishers. It is important to note that the UK, with a population of around 68 million, had a bigger economy than India, which has a population of 1.4 billion, until this year. It is highly unlikely that any documentary by prominent international news channels, including BBC, CNN, or Al Jazeera, will go unnoticed in India. The detractors of PM Modi will use the documentary and its various portions to launch an extensive social media campaign. The BBC would not be able to negatively affect Modi’s image, though it might affect how Modi is perceived by foreigners. It is also quite possible that the documentary might re-establish PM Modi as a strong leader.

The tainted past of PM Narendra Modi and the hateful ideology of RSS cannot be dismissed entirely as a fallacy. Still, an honest review of Modi’s political journey would also suggest that he contested the 2014 general elections on the issue of development and providing an honest government. He was also riding on the failures of the Congress-led UPA government. And then it is also a fact that Hindu extremists felt empowered under the Modi regime and openly started spreading hate against Muslims and indulging in violence against Muslims as well. It is also important to note that the allegations of communalism against Modi, even if proven with substantial evidence, are not an electoral handicap; rather, they would re-confirm and re-energize the radical Hindus in favor of Modi.

(The author is based in New Zealand and has a deep interest in the economy, stock markets, and global affairs concerning India. He can be reached at devrarix@gmail.com.)