<div dir="ltr"><div><h1 class="">Mocking 'secularists' in Germany: PM Modi's jibe on Sanskrit is just classic BJP doublespeak</h1></div><div class=""><div class=""><p class=""><span class="">by <a href="http://www.firstpost.com/author/pramod" style="font:bold 12px arial">G Pramod Kumar</a></span> Apr 14, 2015 16:18 IST</p><br></div></div><p>On
many occasions, AB Vajpayee, considered to be the most statesmanly
leader of the BJP, had been accused of doublespeak - speaking in two
voices to harness two political constituencies.</p><p>One, the Hindutva
forces and the other, the broader political spectrum whose support his
party needed for both staying in power as well as to get votes. For him,
it was also a deft image management exercise which gained him the
profile of a moderate although Congress leader Jaipal Reddy once accused
him of "non-stop doublespeak in a manner most unbecoming of a Prime
Minister".</p><p>Many BJP leaders compulsively indulge in this craft
because they straddle two worlds - that of Hindutva and a constitutional
secular democracy. It’s an inherent contradiction of the BJP. Perhaps
the only other party in India that has a similar intrinsic contradiction
is the CPM, which talks of both democracy and revolution in the same
breath.</p><div id="attachment_2196220" style="width:390px" class=""><a href="http://s3.firstpost.in/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/Modi-Berlin-PTI.jpg"><img style="display: inline;" class="" src="http://s3.firstpost.in/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/Modi-Berlin-PTI.jpg" alt="Modi during the Germany visit. PTI image" height="285" width="380"></a><p style="width:370px" class="">Modi during the Germany visit. PTI image</p></div><p>Prime Minister <a href="http://www.firstpost.com/topic/person/narendra-modi-profile-20711.html" title="Narendra Modi" target="_blank" class="">Narendra Modi</a>’s <a rel="nofollow" target="_blank" href="http://www.ndtv.com/india-news/indias-secularism-cannot-be-shaken-due-to-sanskrit-says-pm-narendra-modi-in-berlin-754743">strange remarks on Sanskrit </a>in
Germany should be seen in this context. At a reception hosted by
Indians in Berlin, he recalled that once upon a time, Germans used to
broadcast a news bulletin in Sanskrit when India didn’t have one. His
reference was perfectly justifiable to revoke a bonhomie of the past and
glorify the respect Germany had for Sanskrit, or rather India.</p><p>But
instead of stopping there, what he said subsequently was cheeky. "I
must applaud the Germans, they had Sanskrit news bulletins...our country
didn't... because of secularism...India's secularism is not so weak
that it will be shaken just because of a language. One should have
self-confidence. That should not be shaken.”</p><p>Secularism anti-Sanskrit or Sanskrit, anti-secular? Who said that, when?</p><p>He
was obviously taking a jibe at “secularists” in India - that Sanskrit
is opposed in India by people who believed in secularism or different
religious beliefs, when even Germany had great respect for that
language. But what he didn’t mention was this: when did secularists ever
oppose a Sanskrit broadcast? Didn’t the All India Radio have a Sanskrit
news bulletin at prime time? Didn’t Doordarshan have a Sanskrit
bulletin? Did anybody oppose those broadcasts on religious grounds? Most
probably the broadcasts were dropped because there were hardly any
listeners.</p><p>Imposition of language had of course been opposed in
India - of both Hindi and Sanskrit for political reasons. When the
Congress tried to impose Hindi in Tamil Nadu, the state rose against it
in unison that led to the consolidation of Dravidian politics. The
Dravidian parties continue to oppose “<em>vada mozhi</em>” (norther
languages) such as Hindi and Sanskrit. This is an expression of an
ethnic and linguistic identity in a pluralistic society. Imposing a
language that’s alien to one’s culture is against the idea of India. If
people ever opposed Sanskrit, it was not because of “secularism” but
because it offended their language-sensibilities.</p><p>In fact, it was
ironical that Modi was praising Germany for its affection for Sanskrit
after dropping German language from the Kendriya Vidyalaya (KV) schools
run his government. A few months ago, the move raised resentment among
KV students and parents because it denied them an opportunity to learn a
foreign language that was quite useful for their future education and
career. Germany is a new-found destination for Indian students seeking
higher education, particularly in engineering and science, because it is
cheap and is linked to liberal employment opportunities.</p><p>The
obvious reason for dropping German from KVs was to promote Sanskrit
although it was couched as a move to promote a three language policy -
Hindi, English and Sanskrit or a modern Indian language. What was also
overlooked while dropping German was that in the last six years, the
number of students travelling to Germany for higher education had risen
by 114 per cent.</p><p>In Berlin, Modi didn’t have an explanation for
dropping German, which was promoted by the German run Goethe Institut in
partnership with the KVs. The language was so popular in the KVs that
in three years, about 50,000 students had begun learning it. Was Modi’s
India low on 'self-confidence' that it decided to drop an useful
language because it threatened Sanskrit?</p><p>Meanwhile, using an
example of the past for taking a dig at “secularists” certainly exposes
Modi’s continued doublespeak. Following a series of attacks on Christian
institutions, at a function in Delhi he had said in February that his
government would not allow any majority or minority group incite hatred
against others. En route to Germany, he told a UNESCO meeting in Paris
that he was committed to the rights and liberties of all Indians. But
when gets an innocuous opportunity, he takes pot-shots at the
“secularists”.<br></p><div class=""><div class="">also see</div><ul class=""><li><div class=""><img src="http://s1.firstpost.in/fpimages/50x37/fixed/jpg/2015/04/VSAchuthanandan_AFP_380.jpg" alt="Curious case of old guards: Are Advani and Achuthanandan riding the same boat?" style="width: 50px; height: 37px;"></div><div class=""><p class=""><a href="http://www.firstpost.com/politics/curious-case-old-guards-advani-achuthanandan-riding-boat-2186197.html" title="Curious case of old guards: Are Advani and Achuthanandan riding the same boat?">Curious case of old guards: Are Advani and Achuthanandan riding the same boat?</a></p></div></li><li><div class=""><img src="http://s1.firstpost.in/fpimages/50x37/fixed/jpg/2015/04/LKAdvani_AP_1June.jpg" alt="Old man begone! PM Modis humiliation of Advani is unkind, may backfire later" style="width: 50px; height: 37px;"></div><div class=""><p class=""><a href="http://www.firstpost.com/politics/old-man-begone-pm-modis-humiliation-of-advani-is-unkind-may-backfire-later-2187601.html" title="Old man begone! PM Modis humiliation of Advani is unkind, may backfire later">Old man begone! PM Modis humiliation of Advani is unkind, may backfire later</a></p></div></li><li><div class=""><img src="http://s1.firstpost.in/fpimages/50x37/fixed/jpg/2015/04/ramdev-modi-reuters.jpg" alt="Now cabinet minister status: Under BJP government, the rise and rise of Baba Ramdev" style="width: 50px; height: 37px;"></div><div class=""><p class=""><a href="http://www.firstpost.com/politics/now-cabinet-minister-status-bjp-government-rise-rise-baba-ramdev-2195830.html" title="Now cabinet minister status: Under BJP government, the rise and rise of Baba Ramdev">Now cabinet minister status: Under BJP government, the rise and rise of Baba Ramdev</a></p></div></li></ul></div><br>
In fact, this is a never-ending ploy of the BJP leaders to pander to
their core constituency while appearing to be secular. LK Advani, once a
thorough hardliner, went to Pakistan in 2005 and said that Mohammad Ali
Jinnah was a secular man and the demolition of the Babri Masjid was the
'saddest day of his life’.<p>Interestingly, the doublespeak
transcends issues. Noted journalist N Ram had made this reference to
Vajpayee’s skill in speaking in two voices in an editorial in Frontline
in 1998. He wrote: “In a classical exercise in doublespeak, Vajpayee (in
his India Today interview released on <span class="" tabindex="0"><span class="">May 15</span></span>)
manages to appeal to two seemingly incompatible political
constituencies. On the one had, he suggests to the Hindutva constituency
that only the BJP, long committed to the bomb, has had the guts to do
what only Indira Gandhi had once attempted, only to be stopped in her
tracks, On the other hand, he acknowledges, with an eye to a broader
political constituency, that every government and every Prime Minister
of independent India had kept “India’s nuclear option open” and
supported “India’s indigenous research and development in the nuclear
field.” (Frontline, 5 June 1998)</p><p>So whether it’s the attack on
minorities, nuclear bomb or even a language such as Sanskrit, the BJP
has to speak in two voices. A forked tongue is perhaps one of its
unshakable assets.</p><a href="http://www.firstpost.com/india/mocking-secularists-germany-pm-modis-jibe-sanskrit-just-classic-bjp-doublespeak-2196094.html">http://www.firstpost.com/india/mocking-secularists-germany-pm-modis-jibe-sanskrit-just-classic-bjp-doublespeak-2196094.html</a><br clear="all"><br>-- <br><div class="gmail_signature">**************************************<br>N.b.: Listing on the lgpolicy-list is merely intended as a service to its members<br>and implies neither approval, confirmation nor agreement by the owner or sponsor of the list as to the veracity of a message's contents. Members who disagree with a message are encouraged to post a rebuttal, and to write directly to the original sender of any offensive message. A copy of this may be forwarded to this list as well. (H. Schiffman, Moderator)<br><br>For more information about the lgpolicy-list, go to <a href="https://groups.sas.upenn.edu/mailman/">https://groups.sas.upenn.edu/mailman/</a><br>listinfo/lgpolicy-list<br>*******************************************</div>
</div>