Narendra Modi vs the Dynasty: Contrasting Ideas of India

SwamyG · Post by **SwamyG** » 12 Jul 2013 01:13

Regarding the foto posted by Krisna.

That billboard must have been raised by one Haji Rafeeq Ahmed of BJP (minority cell/team) from Ambur, Vellore District in Tamil Nadu. I do not know if he is the same guy as this individual: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mecca_Rafeeque_Ahmed

ramana · Post by **ramana** » 12 Jul 2013 03:34

Hindu has a debate and appears fair and balnced but it gives the Modi detractors an extra round.....

http://www.thehindu.com/opinion/op-ed/a ... 905718.ece

Perhaps, as Chairperson of Prasar Bharati, Mrinal Pande has not read the Prasar Bharati (Broadcasting Corporation of India) Act, 1990. Section 12 under “Functions and Powers of Corporation” states: “safeguarding the citizen’s right to be informed freely, truthfully and objectively on all matters of public interest, national or international, and presenting a fair and balanced flow of information including contrasting views without advocating any opinion or ideology of its own.” Ms Pande’s tirade against Narendra Modi, in her article in The Hindu (Op-Ed, “Rambogiri in the year of the flood,” July 11, 2013) is neither balanced nor fair, let alone it being a truthful and honest assessment of Mr. Modi. When the chairperson of Prasar Bharati is unable to present a fair and balanced view without advocating an ideology of hatred towards a person or an entity then how does one trust the institution that she represents and leads as chairperson?

Perhaps, Mrinal Pande has not heard of guilt by association. Ira Pande, Mrinal’s sister and daughter of Gaura Pant — popularly known as Shivani, in a tribute to her Padma Shri awardee mother remembers her as follows: “Ama always referred to husbands as ‘malik’ (owner) for that is how she perceived the man-woman relationship in an ideal marriage.” Does that make Gaura Pant a patriarchal bigot? As Gaura Pant’s daughter, does that make Mrinal Pande, the author of the tirade against Mr. Modi, a bigot? Similarly, it is unfair for a statement that was not even attributed to Narendra Modi to be used to define him as a liar and paint him as parochial and immoral of wanting to save only Gujarati lives.

Perhaps, Mrinal Pande does not even see hypocrisy where it lies. She accuses Mr. Modi of having this remarkable gift for spin doctoring and dodging the real facts with disarming sincerity, while pouring scorn over his opponents and dodging Q&A sessions. It is unfair to portray Mr. Modi talking about his achievements as spin doctoring, while the inability of the political establishment in power to communicate is somehow portrayed as dignified silence. It is a different matter that the dispensation in power has not much to showcase as achievements in the last four years and thus no reason to communicate. Would Ms Pande tell us how many times the Prime Minister, with a responsibility to engage with the people, was involved in a Q&A? How many times has the Chairman of the National Advisory Council been involved in a Q&A? Surely, we can’t have different set of rules for different people. Also, why does appearing only in Q&As of select media sanction it as being a genuine Q&A?

Perhaps, Mrinal Pande has not heard of the term sub-judice. If the highest court of our land finds Mr. Modi guilty of abetting violence, against a particular community, then he will be punished. If the highest court of our land finds laxities in Mr. Modi’s government for handling the riots then Mr. Modi must take responsibility and face the consequences. However, Ms Pande should remember that the Indian government, by not protesting against the United States’s refusal to grant Mr. Modi a visa, has not only undermined the judicial process in our own land and weakened our judicial institutions but also weakened our democracy. Should we not trust our own institutions to stand-up to the challenge rather than let another country prejudge the issue? Ms Pande should remember that the communal violence of 2002 was a tragedy that led to the loss of both Hindu and Muslim lives. Mr. Modi did not start these unfortunate riots. It is therefore irresponsible for her to claim Mr. Modi to have given birth to the parochially divisive frenzy of 2002.

Perhaps, Mrinal Pande has never watched “Rambo.” Inspite of it being a mindless action movie, it has some memorable lines. One memorable exchange from “Rambo III,” set in Afghanistan during the Russian invasion, is between the local arms supplier Mousa Ghani and the protagonist John Rambo, as he prepares to play the Afghan game of ‘Buzkashi’:

Mousa: God must love crazy people.

Rambo: [getting on to the horse] why?

Mousa: He make so many of them!

Leaders in the political spectrum, just as leaders in all walks of life, come in packages. They’re often looked upon as crazy or eccentric in their own right and that doesn’t make them lesser leaders. In fact, successful leaders are the ones who are able to harness these personal traits in a constructive manner apart from their ability to continuously recalibrate and reinvent themselves. Rank authoritarianism to one can be construed as decisive by another. Appearing paranoid to one set of people can be construed as being perfectly sane, confident and well-prepared by a different set. Ultimately, in a land of such varied opinions, the majority opinion will have the most sanctity.

Ms Pande is definitely entitled to her own opinion — after all this is a free country. Certainly, she can’t be entitled to her own facts. John Rambo isn’t entitled to his own facts either.

(Venkat Goli is the founder of Yudofud, a conservative public strategy think tank. E-mail: vgoli@yudofud.com)

Mrinal Pande responds:

I am not surprised by the indignation of the protectors of brand NaMo, who skip the questions raised and move neatly towards raising doubts about this writer’s credentials, even pulling out in the process, irrelevant family connections from the last century. India has seen great generational changes in its women, and our family was no exception. My grandmother, born in the last decade of the 19th century, naturally reflected the ideas and beliefs of most grandmothers (and grandfathers) raised during the period but she was a wonderful human being and we remained close. My writer mother’s independent life and career as an eminent writer, and my own as a journalist, calmly proceeded to be shaped differently by democracy and the liberal education we were both fortunate enough to receive. And Amma was inordinately proud of the achievements of the succeeding generations.

The same anxiety when failing to defend the indefensible propels a deliberate misreading of my criticism of brand NaMo as a defence of the Prime Minister.

Mr. Goli is at pains to point out that the 2002 riots are sub judice. Do we take it, then, that all Indians must be guided by the vows of “omertà,” and refuse to speak on the subject till the final verdict is delivered? The fact of the matter is that the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) report and the description of the gruesome riots by Atal Bihari Vajpayee as a black mark on the nation’s forehead, and his advice to the Chief Minister to observe his raj dharma, are clear indicators of the dubious role of the then government and its head.

The fanatical defenders of any carnage finally come to exist in a different dimension, a twilight zone of half-truths and lies, while those of us who try to defend the people’s right to know the whole painful truth must continue mucking about in the dimension of facts.

(Mrinal Pande, a veteran journalist and writer, is Chairperson, Prasar Bharati.)

its not just indignation dear but the unfairness of it all. ABut then you wouldnt understand.
BTW two chairman before you is my relative. So am familiar with PB.

ashashi · Post by **ashashi** » 12 Jul 2013 04:05

krisna wrote:

language gives the state of TN.

Nice fotos with the merchant of commerce.

Can someone translate the poster?

SwamyG · Post by **SwamyG** » 12 Jul 2013 04:16

Not much in the poster, a few words heralding Modi, who would change India into developed country. Then Rafeeq thanks Rajnath Singh and the regional BJP leader - Ponn. Radhakrishnan for supporting Modi as tomorrow's Indian PM

Local leaders often do such things to remain in the eyes of regional leaders and get noticed.

shaardula · Post by **shaardula** » 12 Jul 2013 04:18

as far as i can tell there is nothing in that poster. narendra modi, rajnath singh and some ponn. radhakrishnan's and some haaji rafik ahamad's names are in prominent font. these types of congratulatory/best wishes type posters by local workers to their party leaders is common in the south.

shaardula · Post by **shaardula** » 12 Jul 2013 04:36

the amount of scrutiny that modi has is prolly unprecedented. even on governance issues. i dont think many politicians could stand up to that level examination and come out with passing colors forget acing it. he has a deep understanding of what the deficiences and bottle necks in the governance and adminstration are. big picture and details. i dont think many politicians can even talk about bus route optimization and the constraints. and then talk about utility of state-level MEA desks in foreign countries and constraints to manufacturing all extempore in one setting. i dont think advani or vaypayee even could that.

but my favourite part is when he identified that for running town municipalities you need technical people, plumbers, electricians, engineers etc. and yet municipalities are overfilled with adminstrative staff. he seems to be very big on skill development and developing a wholistic economy not just one sector or the other.

this is a longish ~2 hour video. but i think it is rewarding.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3WbFqxVKasY
basic message is, he says he is confident that to make an impact nothing fancy need be done, just making simple rationalisations to existing systems itself will bring in orders of magnitude change. every thing fancy is on top of it and a bonus.

Sushupti · Post by **Sushupti** » 12 Jul 2013 07:07

MHA to sack Gujarat cop Sanjiv Bhatt

http://www.indianexpress.com/news/mha-t ... t/1140899/

Sushupti · Post by **Sushupti** » 12 Jul 2013 07:07

Gujarat CJ says he lost SC berth because he opposed HC judgeship for CJI Kabir’s sister

http://www.indianexpress.com/news/gujar ... r/1140908/

SaiK · Post by **SaiK** » 12 Jul 2013 08:49

So, Modi will be disqualified for contesting ... well only invoked at the time of elections - just take him to CBI custody.
http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/p ... epage=true

sum · Post by **sum** » 12 Jul 2013 08:54

Sushupti wrote:MHA to sack Gujarat cop Sanjiv Bhatt

http://www.indianexpress.com/news/mha-t ... t/1140899/

Hai ji?

Babus fighting back aainst INC after the IB fiasco?

Sachin · Post by **Sachin** » 12 Jul 2013 09:35

SaiK wrote:So, Modi will be disqualified for contesting ... well only invoked at the time of elections - just take him to CBI custody.

Hmm.. looks like folks out on bail will not land up in this mess. If BJP is smart it is time to identify all their leaders who would get into this trap. Perhaps they can try anticipatory bails? INC is stooping lower and lower, but I do sense some panic setting in there.

Pranav · Post by **Pranav** » 12 Jul 2013 09:53

A new kind of brain drain?

Gujarat's IT companies attract talent from tech hubs - http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city ... 026890.cms

Hari Seldon · Post by **Hari Seldon** » 12 Jul 2013 09:54

^^Amit shah is out on anticipatory bail. But then he was charge sheeted. Doubt C-system will make that mistake with NM. Will be some sorta midnight arrest, if at all.

krishnan · Post by **krishnan** » 12 Jul 2013 10:26

dont think they will try to jail modi , they known it will back fire

Neela · Post by **Neela** » 12 Jul 2013 10:29

Emergency redux!

ramana · Post by **ramana** » 12 Jul 2013 10:30

Was it a full bench judgment? And how do they address the Constitutional right for redressal?

Its like Judges are saying its final say.

Sri · Post by **Sri** » 12 Jul 2013 10:33

Remana Ji,

The Government has to file a review petition to the court and CJ will decide whether a single Judge, 3 Judge or 5 Judge bench will here it.

Question is will GOI file a review petition?

Vayutuvan · Post by **Vayutuvan** » 12 Jul 2013 10:36

The way things are going it would be a 1977 redux except Smt. SG is no PM IG. But then sri Anna is no JP either even if he were to back CM Modi.

RoyG · Post by **RoyG** » 12 Jul 2013 10:40

If Modi comes to power all the corrupt anti-national elements will lose their bread and butter and will either have to flee to country or go to jail. The whole corrupt architecture will come down. They have no choice but to stop him either by elimination or imprisonment. If either happens to Modi, mass mobilization of nationalists will start in the country and Delhi will be under siege. I have no doubt it will get quite bloody.

Sushupti · Post by **Sushupti** » 12 Jul 2013 11:28

disha · Post by **disha** » 12 Jul 2013 12:27

matrimc'ji

+1. "Backdoor emergency"!

panduranghari · Post by **panduranghari** » 12 Jul 2013 12:29

Has this been posted?

http://www.firstpost.com/politics/the-m ... 50873.html

“I’m not in favour of dividing Hindus and Sikhs. I’m not in favour of dividing Hindus and Christians. All the citizens, all the voters, are my countrymen,” Modi said. “Religion should not be an instrument in your democratic process.”

------------

Good he did not appease Muslims by the above statement. Muslim vote already against Modi and he knows it.

disha · Post by **disha** » 12 Jul 2013 12:45

sum wrote:
Sushupti wrote:MHA to sack Gujarat cop Sanjiv Bhatt

http://www.indianexpress.com/news/mha-t ... t/1140899/
Hai ji?

Babus fighting back aainst INC after the IB fiasco?

Sumji, no. No correlation. Neither there is correlation to 2002 case even though IE wants it to be associated it that way to Bhatt being suspended for 2002.

The real reason Bhatt is under suspension are several

1. There is a case pending against him for a custodial torture and death under his jurisdiction.
2. He has not taken postings where transferred and has been truant (trying to get back to Ahmedabad).

Now a CT is that Sanjiv Bhatt wants to wiggle out of his cases and thus has used 2002 Guj. riots to his advantage. When asked to return his service revolver, he filed a case of improper security against Gov. of Guj. and demanded a bullet proof car provided at the cost of the Govt.

Anyway for what he has done (trying to influence witness etc)., he is not just liable for suspension but for criminal conspiracy to fabricate evidence and perjury that Sanjiv Bhatt can end up convicted for atleast 2years if not more.

His suspension went upto MHA and they also see merit in suspending him. At least the babus do.

prahaar · Post by **prahaar** » 12 Jul 2013 13:25

There was also an official complaint against him for campaigning for his wife during 2012 state elections. Being a member of a government service, he is not supposed to campaign for his wife or for any political party. His dismissal after all the things he has done awards him greater freedom than if he was still a police officer.

Rampy · Post by **Rampy** » 12 Jul 2013 15:42

deleted

Rampy · Post by **Rampy** » 12 Jul 2013 16:03

Sachin wrote:
SaiK wrote:So, Modi will be disqualified for contesting ... well only invoked at the time of elections - just take him to CBI custody.
Hmm.. looks like folks out on bail will not land up in this mess. If BJP is smart it is time to identify all their leaders who would get into this trap. Perhaps they can try anticipatory bails? INC is stooping lower and lower, but I do sense some panic setting in there.

Sachin sir, can you list the cases where you can issue a non bailable arrest warrants? Because if they want to fix Modi or any one from BJP they need to put a case that leads to him not getting any bail. Most corruption and political cases you can get the bail

harbans · Post by **harbans** » 12 Jul 2013 16:22

Sickulars are going berserk over the 'puppy' analogy. There is no analogy here. The analogy if at all is wrt his feelings over an undesirable event. It's like this: An interviewer asks the father of an alleged murderer: "Did your son murder XYZ?". The Father replies: "My son can't kill a chicken/ fly, how can he have murdered XYZ".

In this case the father is not comparing/ insulting XYZ (the victim) with a Chicken/ fly! HE is only saying that as he can't hurt a fly or chicken it's unlikely he will hurt a human being. So in this case NM is saying he would be hurt even as a backside driver when a puppy gets run over.

Pranav · Post by **Pranav** » 12 Jul 2013 16:43

Congress will not declare Rahul as PM candidate, says Digvijaya Singh - http://ibnlive.in.com/news/congress-wil ... 37-64.html

This is to encourage those on the BJP side who point to the Congress to justify why there is no need to declare Modi's name.

Sachin · Post by **Sachin** » 12 Jul 2013 16:48

Rampy wrote:Most corruption and political cases you can get the bail

I am not a legal expert

but... how about being booked for more serious charges like murder, criminal conspiracy etc ?.

krishnan · Post by **krishnan** » 12 Jul 2013 17:08

His puppy statement is going to hurt him , something congis is going to grab on it and use it against him...wrong time and wrong way to put his though

Hari Seldon · Post by **Hari Seldon** » 12 Jul 2013 17:17

from twitter.. Diggy's apparent success is spawning clones...

>>India Today ‏@IndiaToday 11m
I think @NarendraModi is mentally unstable, his psychoanalysis test should be done: Shivanand Tiwari,#JDU on #BJP leader's latest interview.

Yagnasri · Post by **Yagnasri** » 12 Jul 2013 17:18

ramana wrote:
Narayana Rao wrote:Undavvalli Arun Kumar is going to organize a meeting with allegations on Modi.

Fellow used to be BJP or ABVP during the Emergency. Isnt he from Rajamundry?

He is from Rajamandry. But he is INC man from childhood. Said to be close to nassty.

muraliravi · Post by **muraliravi** » 12 Jul 2013 17:20

krishnan wrote:His puppy statement is going to hurt him , something congis is going to grab on it and use it against him...wrong time and wrong way to put his though

Not at all, he knows 200% that no muslim outside gujarat will vote for him. He made that statement just to get attention, he is an expert in this game.

harbans · Post by **harbans** » 12 Jul 2013 17:27

His puppy statement is going to hurt him , something congis is going to grab on it and use it against him...wrong time and wrong way to put his though

Absolutely not! The analogy here is a complete non-issue. When i say 'X' can't hurt a fly in response to someone who says Can 'X' kill, it's not that i compare a fly/ machar with the victim. That is the stretch for which the Psec should be psychoanalysed not NM.

Yagnasri · Post by **Yagnasri** » 12 Jul 2013 17:32

The Pappy analogy is not a off cut remark. He knows how it will be attacked by Sicular fellows and did it deliberately. Sick jholas will fall for it and bring 2002 into discussion when no non Muslim voter cares about it. INC and sick people waste their time and make him more likable for Hindu voters.

He called himself a Hindu Nationalist. Strange that no one saw the importance of that. For the first time some one who is a potential chief executive of the nation is calling himself a Hindu Nationalist or even a Hindu - Last one to do is Shivaji Maharaj and before that Hemu and Kushab Khan - another Gujarathi.

munna · Post by **munna** » 12 Jul 2013 17:35

Narayana Rao wrote: For the first time some one who is a potential chief executive of the nation is calling himself a Hindu Nationalist or even a Hindu - Last one to do is Shivaji Maharaj and before that Hemu and Kushab Khan - another Gujarathi.

Interesting observation and very true! This is indeed first time after Shivaji Maharaj that a challenger for keys to India's destiny has proclaimed his inspiration to be from his faith. It is quite ironical that when a Barak Obama or a Cameron harken back to their respective faiths as their anchors we applaud, but when a potential Indian PM does so, it becomes anathema.

sum · Post by **sum** » 12 Jul 2013 17:38

He called himself a Hindu Nationalist. Strange that no one saw the importance of that. For the first time some one who is a potential chief executive of the nation is calling himself a Hindu Nationalist or even a Hindu

^^+1

That was the first thing which struck me on reading the quotes!!
Really amazing that one has to think so much to call himself a Hindu in a Hindu majority country and hasnt been done till now!!

Yagnasri · Post by **Yagnasri** » 12 Jul 2013 17:46

where is the links gurus - pls post.

kish · Post by **kish** » 12 Jul 2013 17:47

krishnan wrote:His puppy statement is going to hurt him , something congis is going to grab on it and use it against him...wrong time and wrong way to put his though

IMHO, not much. Congis are trying to polarize muslim votes, Which anyway is not with Modi ji. Congis, Commies, SP and other parties are issues statements to augment their muslim vote-share. An apt Analogy would be, predators like Lions, hyena, vultures fighting over each other for their pound of flesh (muslim votes)

These "sickular" parties are really nervous and showing signs of desperation. In 2009, right after 26/11 they were pretty confident of winning elections. Now, they are really scared of Modi Ji. Even, the MSM were callous and dismissive of BJP in 2009. Now they too are really scared, nitpicking like school boys would do.

SwamyG · Post by **SwamyG** » 12 Jul 2013 17:54

Modi's words as usual have been twisted....

http://www.ndtv.com/article/india/naren ... orm-391334

Union minister Salman Khurshid of the Congress said Modi should speak less if he doesn't want to be misinterpreted.

"Speaking of anything that is hurtful, be it for a human being or an animal, there should be a sense of remorse. I don't think he felt the sadness that he spoke about," Mr Khurshid told NDTV.

So per Khurshid, the onus is always on the speaker and not the listner, huh? The listener will continue to misinterpret as he wants, twists things as he wants, tarnish the speaker as he wants.....and the only option for the speaker is to keep mouth shut.

Anyway, I think Modi has now enough supporters who understand his policies, vision and accomplishments - passed a critical threshold, and such machinations from INC will be of less an issue. And people are awaking; just like courts throw out frivolous law suits, people will reject such manufactured controversies.

And, here is the interview link: http://blogs.reuters.com/india/2013/07/ ... ndra-modi/

Allies and people within the BJP say you are too polarizing a figure
If in America, if there’s no polarization between Democrats and Republicans, then how would democracy work? It’s bound (to happen). In a democracy there will be a polarization between Democrats and Republicans.

This is democracy’s basic nature. It’s the basic quality of democracy. If everyone moved in one direction, would you call that a democracy?