Mohan Konanoor
Sep 3, 2018 · 2 min read

Modi’s Rhetoric

In speech after speech, our Supreme Leader paints the pre-2014 India as a dystopian, dysfunctional, dismal place. India was being counted amongst Fragile Five, he says. “Policy paralysis was the order of the day”, “People were ashamed that they were born in India” and so on.

Whenever I hear those descriptions, I always wonder is he talking about the same country that I lived in and loved for nearly half a century? Because, in all those years, I don’t remember ever feeling anything but pride about my country. So imagine my surprise when a person who apparently was never proud of the tremendous progress the country had made in the preceding decades takes over the reins of the country, actually undoes some of the progress in some significant ways and then tells you, “There, I have fixed it. You may start feeling proud of your country now”. Huh?

No, Modi ji. I didn’t need your permission to love my country. I was always proud of this great country. Of our history. Our traditions. Our cuisines. Our festivals. Our music. Our languages. Our literature. Our movies. Our climate. Our natural beauty. Our epics. Our scientists. Our artistes. Our media. Even our doordarshan and vividh bharti. And this was not some jingoistic, chest-thumping, “my country, right or wrong” kind of pride either. I was proud because I genuinely liked most of the Indian stuff compared to what was available in the rest of the world.

And some of us didn’t need you to come and tell us that paying taxes is a good thing. We have been paying taxes honestly for years knowing that it is being put to good use.

What you have done is, firstly, to substantially ratchet up this nauseating rhetoric of how everything was bleak before your arrival. Secondly, and more importantly, you and your party goons, with the deft use of social media, have hopelessly divided the people of this country. The effect of this polarisation is visible in the lynchings and attacks that are happening on a daily basis.

But I have not lost all hope. We will defeat you and regain our old India. The progressive, tolerant, inclusive and beautiful India. But until then, I have just one request: please tone down your rhetoric and falsehoods just a tad bit, for the sake of your countrymen’s sanity. Thank you.