Skip to main content

BJP samples Gandhi spectacles, "world class" Mahatma Mandir to say, Modi is best follower of Gandhi thought

By Our Representative
In an unusual defence of the Khadi Village and Industries Commission (KVIC) – better known as Khadi Gramodyog – “deleting” Mahatma Gandhi on the KVIC's 2017 calender, printing instead the photograph of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the BJP has said that Modi alone has “followed” the Mahatma as no one else, “whether it is Gandhi's spectacles or thoughts.”
Issued by the Gujarat BJP, known to be more “Modi”-fied than any state unit of India, a statement signed by its spokesperson Bharat Pandya, said, BJP under Modi has been a “bigger follower" of the Mahatma than Congress, adding, this can be seen from what Modi as chief minister did in Gujarat.
Rolling out one example after another of Modi "following" Gandhian ideology, BJP said, “When Modi was Gujarat chief minister, he would inspire party cadres and people to buy khadi clothes on October 2."
Referring to the high-profile convention hall, being mainly used for the Vibrant Gujarat world business summits, as yet another sample of Modi following Gandhian ideology, BJP said, "It is under him along that the world-class Mahatma Mandir was constructed in Gandhinagar.”
Modi's defence comes amidst KVIC employees have protested, reportedly  demanded reprinting the calendar, with critics throwing open questions like: Is Gandhi old and irrelevant? Is Modi the new father of the nation? And, how could the poster boy of the very ideology which killed Gandhi replace Gandhi?
While the Congress and other parties have already protested against the KVIC replacing Gandhi with Modi on calender, a top site run by Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) has called the Directorate of Advertising and Visual Publicity (DAVP) Modi the theme of Government of India’s official calendar for 2017 “an unprecedented display of hero worship and sycophancy”.
It insists, “As if that was not enough, Modi has also thrown the Gandhi out of the khadi, with KVIC replacing Modi “in the iconic charkha photo that had represented the values and ideals behind brand khadi, one of the largest rural arts, crafts and textile industry in India for over seven decades.”
Rolling out more samples of the Prime Minister following Gandhi's thoughts, BJP said, “Modi alone put in motion 'live' demonstration of Gandhiji's historic saga of life. Further: “Modi got a massive Gandhi charkha on display both at the Delhi airport and at the Vibrant seminars.”
The party further said, “After he became Prime Minister, Modi used Gandhian ideology for his Swacch Bharat (Clean India) campaign, even as providing a symbolic significance to the Mahatma's spectacles. To spread Gandhian ideology, Modi intensively propagated Gandhi charkha and spectacles.”
Saying that things would not have turned “so controversial” if the calender had the photograph of Prime Minister or President of some other country, or of film actor or some other VVIP, BJP said, “The controversy has been created by the Congress only because it was Modi's photograph on the KVIC calender.”
The BJP's justification has come following the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) being anonymously quoted that the controversy is "baseless and unnecessary". Quoting “PMO sources”, a report said, “In 1996,2002, 2005, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2016 Mahatma Gandhi photograph was not there on calendar"
The PMO was further quoted as saying that “there is no rule in that only Mahatma Gandhi's photo must be printed on the calendar," even as justifying the Modi photograph saying, "Modi is a youth icon and he is the reason behind the increasing popularity of khadi products among the youths."

Comments

TRENDING

'Enough evidence' in Indian tradition to support legal basis for same-sex marriage

By Iyce Malhotra, Joseph Mathai, Sandeep Chachra*  The ongoing hearing in the Supreme Court on same-sex marriage provides space for much-needed conversations on issues that have hitherto remained “invisible” or engaged with patriarchal locker room humour. We must recognize that people with diverse sexualities and complex gender identities have faced discrimination, stigma and decades of oppression. Their issues have mainly remained buried in dominant social discourse, and many view them with deep insecurities.

Savarkar 'criminally betrayed' Netaji and his INA by siding with the British rulers

By Shamsul Islam* RSS-BJP rulers of India have been trying to show off as great fans of Netaji. But Indians must know what role ideological parents of today's RSS/BJP played against Netaji and Indian National Army (INA). The Hindu Mahasabha and RSS which always had prominent lawyers on their rolls made no attempt to defend the INA accused at Red Fort trials.

Buddhist shrines were 'massively destroyed' by Brahmanical rulers: Historian DN Jha

Nalanda mahavihara By Our Representative Prominent historian DN Jha, an expert in India's ancient and medieval past, in his new book , "Against the Grain: Notes on Identity, Intolerance and History", in a sharp critique of "Hindutva ideologues", who look at the ancient period of Indian history as "a golden age marked by social harmony, devoid of any religious violence", has said, "Demolition and desecration of rival religious establishments, and the appropriation of their idols, was not uncommon in India before the advent of Islam".

Victim of communal violence, Christians in Manipur want Church leadership to speak up

By Fr Cedric Prakash SJ*  The first eleven days of May 2023 have, in many ways, been a defining period of Indian history! Plenty has happened in a rapid-fire stream of events. Ironically, each one of them are indicators of how crimes and the criminalisation of society has become the ‘new norm’; these include, the May Day rallies with a focus on the four labour codes which are patently against the rights of workers; the U S Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) released its Annual Report on 1 May stating that conditions for religious freedom in India “continued to worsen in 2022”; the continued protest by the Indian women wrestlers at Jantar Mantar for the expulsion of the chief of the Indian Wrestlers Federation on very serious allegations; the Elections in Karnataka on 10 May (with communalism and corruption as the mainstay); the release of the fake, derogative and insensitive film ‘The Kerala Story’; the release of World Free Press Index on 3 May which places India

Delhi HC rules in favour of retired Air Force officer 'overcharged' for Covid treatment

By Rosamma Thomas*  In a decision of May 22, 2023, the Delhi High Court ruled in favour of petitioner Group Captain Suresh Khanna who was under treatment at CK Birla Hospital, Gurugram, between April 28 and May 5, 2021, for a period of eight days, for Covid-19 pneumonia. The petitioner had to pay Rs 3,55,286 as treatment costs, but the Ex-Servicemen Contributory Health Scheme (ECHS) only reimbursed him for Rs 1,83,748, on the basis of government-approved rates. 

Swami Vivekananda's views on caste and sexuality were 'painfully' regressive

By Bhaskar Sur* Swami Vivekananda now belongs more to the modern Hindu mythology than reality. It makes a daunting job to discover the real human being who knew unemployment, humiliation of losing a teaching job for 'incompetence', longed in vain for the bliss of a happy conjugal life only to suffer the consequent frustration.

Unlike other revolutionaries, Hindutva icon wrote 5 mercy petitions to British masters

By Shamsul Islam*  The Hindutva icon VD Savarkar of the RSS-BJP rulers of India submitted not one, two,or three but five mercy petitions to the British masters! Savarkarites argue: “There are no evidences to prove that Savarkar collaborated with the British for his release from jail. In fact, his appeal for release was a ruse. He was well aware of the political developments outside and wanted to be part of it. So he kept requesting for his release. But the British authorities did not trust him a bit” (YD Phadke, ‘A complex Hero’, "The Indian Expres"s, August 31, 2004)

India joining US sponsored trade pillar to hurt Indian farmers, 'promote' GM seeds, food

Counterview Desk  As many as 32 civil society organisations (CSOs), in a letter to Union Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal on the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF) and India joining the trade pillar, have said that its provisions will allow the US to ensure a more favourable regulatory regime “for enhancing its exports of genetically modified (GM) seeds and GM food”, underlining, it will “significantly hurt the livelihoods of Indian farmers.”

Savarkar 'opposed' Bhagat Singh's, Netaji's dream of India, supported British war efforts

By Shamsul Islam* In a shocking development, the student wing of the RSS put the busts of martyrs Bhagat Singh and Subhash Chandra Bose with Savarkar's on one pedestal at the University of Delhi late in the night on August 20, 2019. Bhagat Singh sacrificed his life for a socialist-democratic-secular republic and Netaji raised Azad Hind Fauj (INA) consisting of people of all religions and regions for armed liberation of India.

Undermining law, breastfeeding? Businesses 'using' celebrities to promote baby food

By Rajiv Shah  A report prepared by the top child welfare NGO, Breastfeeding Promotion Network of India (BPNI), has identified as many as 15 offenders allegedly violating the Indian baby food law, the Infant Milk Substitutes Feeding Bottles, and Infant Foods (Regulation of Production, Supply and Distribution) Act 1992, and Amendment Act 2003 (IMS Act), stating, compliance with the law “seems to be dwindling by the day.”