I am not a Modi-fied and yet, I want Abki Baar Modi Sarkar !!!
India never had a strongman (much more than a strong leader)
at the top in recent history. And the definition of strongman can be a subject
of debate. But one key ingredient of a strongman is decision-making, one who
can take decisions on his/her feet. When I look back through the peephole of
history, first stop would be Atal Bihari Vajpayee. He was the strongest leader
and finest statesman of post-independence India. And he would come close to be
called a strongman under whom BJP was united all over India, no BJP leader
created ruckus, much unlike today when BJP is in real turmoil. He was
instrumental in India becoming a nuclear power. I don’t call him strongman
because of Kargil war. Oh yes ! He won us Kargil war in 1999 but that is where
he failed also, if you want my opinion. He just reacted to what had already
happened, just freeing up parts of Jammu & Kashmir whereas it was the best
chance to cross LOC and redrawing the geography maps and show Pakistan that India
can take a strong action when it comes to protecting its people. That would
have been a real dent in psyche of Pakistani leaders to do any nuisance in near
future. In game theory terms, I would say, Pakistani leaders keep doing
nuisance because they know their opponents wouldn’t do anything unexpected.
They know our playbook. Game theory says your actions always depend upon your
opponent’s action and Pakistani leaders have really learnt this theory which
has won eight Nobel prizes.
Next stop would be Indira Gandhi. She was a strong but
selfish woman who always thought of herself before nation. She used Emergency
to protect her fiefdom. She had power but no brain. If she ever thought of
nation before self, she would have been the Indian leader to rewrite Indian
history.
Next in the list and the last one post-independence would be
Jawahar Lal Nehru. But he wasn’t a strongman. I would stop short of calling him
a strong leader too because he was selfish and somewhat elitist. He changed
Indian politics forever by bringing in dynastic politics in mainstream.
20th century pre-independence India had a lot of
strongmen / women. Bal Gangadhar Tilak, Chandrashekhar Azad, Bhagat Singh and
Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose were people India deserved as its mainstream
leaders but they remained on the fringes. The reason was not only that they
were selfless and abhorred any power but also because India has always been a
docile nation and they were always eclipsed by Mahatma Gandhi. It is only now
that we realize their importance and that’s why these people always top India’s
popularity charts and greatest Indian charts.
Rani Laxmibai, Tantya Tope, Babu Veer Kunwar Singh are the
examples that India produces its strongest only in times of crisis. They would
have shaped histories but were never given a chance. Aurangzeb was strong and
so was Muhammad Bin Tuglaq but both were without common sense. In between Akbar
was a strong leader but he was also wise. And he always dealt anything with
wisdom and hence, he is called one of the greatest Indians to have ever lived.
The last time India had a strongman at the helm was during Prithvi Raj Chauhan
in 1192. Whoof ! It is our misfortune that I have to go so far back. Pre 1192
era, India was the real superpower because it had always had strongmen at the
top be it Chandragupta Maurya, Ashoka The Great, Samudra Gupta, Skanda Gupta or
Harshavardhan.
Coming to present, India has a rare chance to select a
strongman at the helm and see if India’s image of being a soft nation can be
changed. And to see if India can really change. And to see if India can really
react strongly in world affairs. And to see if India can really pull its levers
of growth engines and most of all, it will be a test if Narendra Modi is really
strong ?
Now there will always be danger with these type of people.
The biggest of them all is the equilibrium of Indian society and stability of
internal fabric. These people tend to be a little authoritarian. Like that was with Indira Gandhi when she declared Emergency
to protect self and presented India with greatest democratic and human rights
problem.
But I am ready to take that chance. I want to see how a
strong India behaves and how world reacts to it. And the world is already
reacting. USA, UK and other European nations are already in a fix on how to
deal with a strong India if Narendra Modi comes to power. The Economist article
was just a reflection of how those nations are already worried. China must also
be hoping Modi doesn’t come in power. And Pakistan is almost fraught with
Narendra Modi coming to power.
Sometimes, sitting in my room and having a cup of tea, I
think how would Narendra Modi have reacted during Kargil War or during 2008
Mumbai attack or how would he have dealt when 2 years ago, Brahmaputra waters
were diverted by China and UPA government found no evidence of it even by
satellite.
I want to give him one chance to show what would he have done in these situations.
Caveat:
1. I am not placing Narendra Modi in the league of those
great Indians whose names I have mentioned in the article, not even comparing with them.
2. The opinions expressed here can not be used against me in the court of law because my history was always weak and I never got good marks in history.
