Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi
Born - 2nd October 1869 at Porbandar.
Assassinated -
30th January 1948 at Birla House, New Delhi.
Lot of people ask me why
should he be the father of the nation? Our independence struggle dates back to
the 1800s then how is he eligible to be called the "Father of the
Nation". That tells us a lot about
the times that we are living. Gandhiji has to prove why he deserves to be the
father of the nation! Nehru has to prove why he had to be the First Prime
Minister and anyone who has the fortitude to question those in power need to
prove their allegiance to the Nation. The saving grace is that still the
nationality is not decided based on such whims and fancies, at least till the
NRC is implemented in the "right" and "intended" sense.
72 years after
independence, a nation questioning the "father of nation" only shows
how sick our minds have become. The Venom that is injected has entered every
vein in our body and our intellect and ability to interpret information has
been taken over by organised propaganda through social media platforms.
India before
independence was not India. It was a geographical area where 400+ small kingdoms
fought each other for supremacy. The Dutch, French and then the British saw the
immense wealth and invaded these kingdoms and eventually captured them. There
was localised resistance and fights. Most often than not, those went futile as
the resistance was too small against the might of the Britishers (Who
eventually had control over majority of the geographical area) or the
neighbouring kingdoms used the opportunity and helped the British to defeat
these challengers. A Jhansi Rani, Tantiya Tope, Pazhassi Raja, Kittur Rani
Chennamma were not considered the father /mother figure of the nation because
of these reasons. Not because their valour, courage or patriotism had anything
lacking.
It was the formation
of Indian National Congress and the leadership of the dynamic and determined
Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi which gave a Path, Purpose, Shape and the much-needed
coordination to such localised resistance. He led the freedom struggle from the
front. His non-violent techniques like the Salt Satyagraha, Non-Cooperation
Movement etc. Were strong signals to the British. People from different corners
of the Geographical Region saw their leader in him. He was able to unite people
from all corners; belonging to different religions and casts, having language
differences, having cultural disparities etc., to line up behind him and
display our might to the Empire "whose sun never set".
It is for this reason
that not only Indians but people all over the world see their inspiration in him.
Giant world personalities like Martin Luther King Jr., Nelson Mandela, Ho Chi
Minh and many other such greats found their inspiration in Gandhiji. A
Superhuman in his own rights, Rabindra Nath Tagore named him
"MAHATMA"; not out of obsession or expecting personal favours as some
of the current day "greats" do with their intellectual leader. It was
well and truly deserved.
It is the freedom
that he got us, which has enabled us to question him, belittle him, disrespect
him and discredit him of his service to this great nation which after
Independence is called INDIA.
An individual who was
inspired by a nefarious ideology assassinated him by shooting him at a point-blank
range, in 1948. Today the ideology behind that one person has found more
takers, and unfortunately so; and they are assassinating the idea called
"Gandhism".
We don't get offended
when he is called "Mohanlal" by the Prime Minister,
We are not agitated
when he is referred in Singular as 'woh ek chatur baniya tha" by the then
President of the largest political party,
When his image is
shot again and again in the streets,
When he is removed
from Khadi posters,
When he is cornered
to cleanliness or swachatha campaign posters
When his idea of
India is torn down
We seem to be fine
with the "father of our nation" being belittled day in and day out.
He was a champion of
Ahimsa, but today we champion in Himsa against the other, that could be a Muslim,
Dalit, Christian or anyone else opposing the idea and ideology of a certain
group.
He was a champion of
non-cooperation. We too champion that, but against our Kashmiri Brothers and
Sisters by locking them down in their places for almost two months.
He championed
Quit-India, we too are doing that but in the name of NRC by asking people to
prove their nationality, to those including the former President's family or a
Army Veteran's family.
He still instills
inspiration in many minds, and it is time that such minds come together to
resist the onslaught of the ideology which assassinated him.
On his 150th Birth
Anniversary, let's resolve to fight it in our own way, one that is guided by
and based on his ideas and ideology.
Wishing all of you a
happy Gandhi Jayanthi.
Jai Hind!
