TMC MP Mahua Moitra’s post in which she claims Bengalis alone led the fight for Indian independence and asks people to name one Gujarati who took part in the movement came as a shocker for all. She has also identified Veer Savarkar as a Gujarati, targeting him for writing letters of apology to the British. This has to be declared the joke of the year, as she forgot (or didn’t know) that Mahatma Gandhi, Sardar Patel and countless other freedom fighters were from Gujarat.
This display of Bengali chauvinism that has been unleashed at present in election bound West Bengal shows what existing in a closed eco-system can do to one. Moitra is more educated than the average politician and should know better than to subscribe to a narrow ideology. It can only be said that the desire for power and hatred for the political opposition clouded her understanding. It is a matter of concern, therefore, how much of a role this attitude plays in her functioning as a public representative. Such blind hostility towards others identified by their regional, racial, caste and other origins must greatly affect one’s judgment in dealing with official responsibilities.
She is, of course, not the only politician that is driven by such prejudice. There are other regional entities like the DMK and the Shiv Sena that target people from other parts of the country. Whether it is ‘Dravidianism’, or language bias regarding Tamil or Marathi, there is a large reservoir of cultivated hate to draw upon during election time. How it impacts upon the lives of the common people matters little to leaders who rise to power on such basis. Are they not concerned that their own people would, in turn, be the targets of such profiling? And, in a world where social media exports packaged prejudice even beyond national boundaries, the adverse impact will be felt everywhere? If Indians don’t respect their fellow nationals, why should people in other countries?
Should not the system and presently the Election Commission take action against such ignorant, false and hate-filled statements by those in high positions? Particularly in the case of those who have a history of indulging in such divisive politics. Surely, the people have the right to demand a minimum standard of behaviour from their elected representatives. As a last resort, it can only be hoped such politics will be rejected by the voters in the coming contests. Otherwise, the price will have to be paid by everyone.
