Targeting young minds

Nani Palkhiwala. - SANDEEP SAXENA

A FEW days ago a leading English daily published an article based on some interviews with students. The question asked was: who are your heroes in history? The result was to me shocking Gandhiji at 23 per cent, Atal Behari Vajpayee 20 per cent and third was Hitler at 17 per cent. Even Nelson Mandela was beaten by the Nazi monster. Nehru, Roosevelt, Churchill, de Gaulle, Indira Gandhi, Nasser and Mao were not even mentioned.

One young man, when asked why he selected Hitler, said, "He made Germany strong". This is both sad and dangerous. Sad because this lad has not bothered to check the facts about this evil man, who sent millions to the gas chambers, destroyed Germany and large parts of Europe. He had no time for Indians he actually supported a fascist philosophy in which we too would have been eliminated as an inferior race. Dangerous because such a mind-set strikes at the very root of our traditions of religious and racial tolerance. It does grave injury to our democracy, secularism, diversity, pluralism. Where do these young Indians get their intellectual nourishment from?

When this article appeared, a British friend of mine came to see me. We were up at Cambridge exactly 50 years ago. He was a member of the House of Commons for 27 years. He is now in the House of Lords and a leading light of the Jewish community. "Natwar, what has happened to India's youth? Seventeen per cent for Hitler. In no other country would Hitler get even 1 per cent of the vote." I shared his horror.

These misguided youngsters are not even half educated. They have fallen prey to the vicious propaganda of the bigoted and fanatics of the lunatic fringe of some sections of Hindu society. The Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh was established in 1925. But we were Hindus for thousands of years before 1925, or were we not? The Jan Sangh was born in 1951. The BJP and its client organisations, even later. Who in the name of heaven are they to teach us our dharma, our heritage, our culture, our civilisation? They go on scribbling on walls "Garv se kaho hum Hindu hain" say with pride that we are Hindus. Really. Only people who have doubts about being Hindus write such things on walls. They have a huge inferiority complex.

However, their capacity to sow seeds of communal discord cannot be ignored. A handful of hate-mongers can create and sustain communal frenzy for a long time. They are experts at spreading misinformation, creating communal misunderstanding and worse.

Eighty-five per cent Hindus live in India that is Bharat; 12 per cent Muslims too live in this great country. Should 85 per cent be afraid of 12 per cent? It does not make sense. And yet the BJP won in Gujarat by invoking the fear of Mian Musharraf. Shame on those who have reduced politics to such levels. These bigots and cowards must be challenged at every step, and shown the door.

I WAS abroad when Nani Palkhiwala died. I had not met him for a number of years. The last time I met him was in Aurangabad at some function in the mid-1990s. We were the only two speakers. Nani was in excellent form and went hell for leather for politicians. He was eloquent, he was witty and the audience lapped it up. I had and have considerable respect for Nani's ability and calibre, his integrity and public spiritedness. But, that evening he had been carried away. When I spoke, I took him head on. I asked how many elections he had fought? Nil. If he felt so strongly about "political sewage" why did he not give up his lucrative practice and join politics? I said I had the moral right to pose these questions to him, as I had resigned from the Indian Foreign Service although I had nearly five years of service left. But he had no moral right to abuse politicians if he was unwilling to chuck his practice. I too got my share of applause in which Nani joined with enthusiasm. He was a big-hearted man and I was impressed by his sporting conduct. A few days later I reviewed a book of his for Frontline. He leaves a void. His demise has rightly been widely mourned. In some ways he had star quality.

THIS column will appear in the first week of January 2003. I have had a rotten 2002 losing my daughter and daughter-in-law. I hope 2003 will bring joy and peace to all my readers. Let me say good riddance to 2002 and welcome 2003.