India : 67 Years Of Defying Odd’s

Exceptions To The Rule

Inconceivable idea, far-fetched proposition, road that ascends to disintegration, muted skepticism, wide spread discord & daunting diversity made India, the idea beyond the midnight of 15th August 1947 a mammoth quest.

Sir John Strachey, British India’s finance minister & member of governor-general’s council lecturing Cambridge once said “is the first and the most essential thing to learn about India, that there is not, and never was an India, or even any country of India even possessing, according to any European ideas, any sort of unity, physical, political, social or religious”. Although he conceded “conceivable that national sympathies may arise in particular Indian countries”, but which could never extend beyond a limit where Punjab is bothered about Kerala or Gujrat cares for Bengal.

Even Sir Winston Churchill upheld Strachey’s view on “India, a transitory phenomenon” and went on to famously say “ In handing over the Government of India to these so-called political classes we are handing over to men of straw, of whom, in a few years, no trace will remain ”. He argued “it is no more a single country than the Equator.” He in last two decades of British India was one of the most outspoken speaker against the idea of Dominion India, almost belittling the abilities of national leaders to the extent, “of them pulling India back to Middle Ages”. Congress & Muslim League conflict contented him, hoping “ it to be more bitter & nasty”. The founder of Singapore, Lee Kuan Yew, recently echoed the same sentiment, arguing that “India is not a real country. Instead it is thirty-two separate nations that happen to be arrayed along the British rail line.”

Rudyard Kipling also thought India is too old a civilization to govern itself, for them to learn new norms of the world, then. J S Mill, a liberal and the most influential English-speaking philosopher of the nineteenth century said on India “anything approaching to representing is entirely out of question”. Someone said “only form of government suitable for India was enlightened despotism”. These are just few references, all of them considered India as their “duty” and assumed India a state on its own, a “non-viable” idea. So does it imply, No Indian nation had the versatility of an admirable British Empire and the endurance of it’s officers, who could possibly do this work efficiently themselves.

What were they talking about? 3.2 Million Sq. km, now 21 scheduled languages, hundreds of dialect, 8 major religions, hundreds of tribes, caste, sub-caste, hundreds of princely states, ethnicity, culture, festivals, traditions & rituals. All this was embodied in free India’s first cabinet, with Pandit, Sardar, Maulana, Dr Ambedkar, John Mathai, RK Chetty, AmritKaur, Mookerjee, CooverjiHormusji etc.

But then they never counted on “Iron man of India” Sardar Patel, less famously known as “Bismark of India” to come to the helm of affairs and integrate as many as five hundred self-governing princely states into the federation of India with his bold & unambiguous diplomacy backed by the use of military, if pertinent. He, who at the request of Gandhiji regretted the president-ship of Congress, gave India its first Prime Minister,the most passionate proponent of “oneness” in India, Pandit Nehru. He once declared, “the one thing that should be obvious to all of us is that there is no group in India, no party, no religious community, which can prosper if India does not prosper. If India goes down, we go down, all of us….”. Speaking at Trichur in December 1955, he pointed out, “we have before us lessons of history……..because of this lack of unity amongst us the entire community of India has been separated into castes and creeds which do not pull together. Therefore, I lay stress everywhere on the unity of India and on our need to fight communalism, regionalism, separatism and casteism.” This draw & desire for unity in Sardar Patel&Pandit Nehru was adopted by India’s first law minister and chairman of constitution drafting committee, Dr B R Ambedkar. Giving us the preamble “ WE, THE PEOPLE OF INDIA, having solemnly resolved to constitute India into a SOVEREIGN SOCIALIST SECULAR DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC and to secure to all its citizens: JUSTICE, social, economic and political; LIBERTY of thought, expression, belief, faith and worship; EQUALITY of status and of opportunity; and to promote among them all FRATERNITY assuring the dignity of the individual and the unity and integrity of the Nation” , speaks volumes about vision, desire, passion and courage of India & its leaders, to prove all critical commentators wrong. More to our less understanding, “Hindustani” emerging as national language held its fort till Gandhiji’s era largely supported by Gandhiji himself and equally by Pandit Nehru, Maulana Azad and other like-minded intellectuals. Hindustani wouldn’t have just caused the coalescence of Hindi & Urdu, but was endlessly open to all other regional languages. However, sooner than later “Hindi” became our national language, much to the discomfort of many. This had lot of potential to cause the larger dent on unifying India. But failed drastically, except for the fact that today almost every Indian state have more than one official language.

Along with political and social unity, India has made strides towards economic development and integration. Especially since the reforms undertaken during the early 90’s, economy has grown at an astonishing pace further strengthening the unity of the country. Thanks to the significant economic progress of the last couple of decades, places like Mumbai, Bangalore and Delhi have become melting pot of different Indian cultures. Owing to job requirements and otherwise as well, people have transcended geographic and cultural boundaries to adopt a more cosmopolitan lifestyle further unifying this diverse landscape. The will of its people and the vision of its founding forefathers, has given India a kind political stability not seen in this region and defying all odds. This sense of political stability and security has played major role in development of major economic centers spread across the length and breadth of the country.

This hard earned unity, integrity and stability has been gifted to us by our forefathers and so it is contingent upon us to further enhance and defend this feeling of Indianess. We should break away from the narrow shackles of political, religious and cultural intolerance and try to work towards a more cohesive, tolerant and progressive India.

India is a developing story !

Jai Hind !VandeMatram !