The Hindu Business Line : The politics of polarisation

The flames of hatred against specific groups hurt the lives and livelihoods of ordinary people more than others. More important, they chip away at the notion of a united India where regional aspirations are less important than national unity and goals.

Rasheeda Bhagat

As a country we seem to be constantly fine-tuning our penchant for polarisation. And it is not only the majority-minority divide; luckily for our politicians, a plethora of ‘divides’ are available — regional, linguistic, class, caste and many other “differences” one can ingeniously invent to whip up the passions that set one group of people against another.

Trouble is brewing once again in Maharashtra, as the Shiv Sena and its severed limb, led by Raj Thackeray, nephew of the Sena chief, Mr Bal Thackeray, try to outdo each other in the ‘Maharashtra for Maharashtrians’ campaign.

The younger Thackeray, who has formed the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS), has once again let loose the spectre of hate in Mumbai and the rest of Maharashtra by targeting Bollywood icon Amitabh Bachchan; other ‘North Indians’, particularly Biharis, have also earned the MNS chief’s wrath for eking out a livelihood in Maharashtra.

The charge against Mr Bachchan was that even though the Mumbai film industry had made him what he is today, his loyalty was only towards Uttar Pradesh, the land of his birth.

Whether it was contesting an election, taking on the role of a brand ambassador or something as small as setting up a school, the Big B was charged with favouring only UP.

As the younger Mr Thackeray raved and ranted against ‘North Indians’, MNS activists considered this a signal to throw stones at the Bachchan residence and rough up “North Indians”. They did not stop with the poor bhaiyas from UP and the Biharis who run street food-stalls in Mumbai. Cars were also attacked, North Indians beaten and shops owned by them forced to close down — disruption and violence of a kind any city can do without.

War of Words

Nobody is in any doubt over the real target of Raj Thackeray’s resentment. It is the Samajwadi Party and its top leaders such as Mr Mulayam Singh Yadav and Mr Amar Singh, both of whom are close to the senior Bachchan. The ultimate goal is, of course, the vote of the Maharashtrian.

SP Rajya Sabha MP, Ms Jaya Bachchan, did take on Mr Raj Thackeray and his criticism that the Big B had established a girls school in UP by saying that if he donated some of the land owned by him in Mumbai, the Bachchans would be happy to open another school in Aishwarya’s name in the metropolis. To which Raj Thackeray replied that she was welcome to buy his land for such a cause at the prevailing market price.

In her short stint as MP, during which she weathered quite a few storms, including the disqualification drama initiated at the instance of Congress chief, Ms Sonia Gandhi, over the office-of-profit issue, the veteran actress had learnt enough to know that the whole brouhaha is but a thinly disguised bid to sway the Marathi vote bank loyal to the Shiv Sena.

That’s why, speaking to the media she said that, having lived in Mumbai, she knew Mr Bal Thackeray (“who is like a father to me”) and his son Uddhav Thackeray very well. “But I do not know any other Thackeray.” This is not only an insult to the estranged nephew but a clever ploy to enlist the support of the man who really matters in Maharashtra, whether in or out of power.

Significantly, the Bachchans are not the only targets of Mr Raj Thackeray’s dangerous promotion of Maharashtra only for the marathi manush. His uncle has trodden this thorny path many times, rather dexterously. Raj also made fun of the Chhath Puja — calling it a ‘drama’ — done by Biharis and even UPites, and this has irked the Railway Minister, Mr Lalu Prasad.

The Bihar strongman has called Raj a “political novice” and warned him not to play dangerous games that hurt the sentiments of people, apart from physically threatening them. The flames of hatred stoked by such statements, be it in Maharashtra, Assam or Karnataka, ultimately hurt the lives and livelihoods of ordinary people more than others.

More important, they chip away with deadly precision at the notion of a united India where regional aspirations are less important than national unity and goals, and where every Indian has the right to live in any part of the country he chooses and get equal opportunities to earn a decent livelihood.

An economically disadvantaged Bihari or UP bhaiya goes to Mumbai, Delhi or Chennai. not because he loves to live away from his family and migrate to these cities, but because there are limited employment opportunities at home.

And typically, in these mega cities, they end up engaged in hard physical labour; working long hours, sleeping on platforms and cutting corners to ensure they send enough money back home to keep the family from starvation.

It’s politics!

Such assaults on a section of the population are all the more terrible when they are made in a megapolis such as Mumbai, where the stoic character of the city, the enterprising nature of its people and the fact that it is called home by some of the richest as well as the poorest of India, is the stuff legends are made of.

It is one of the curses of modern-day India that we are increasingly seeing that elections and votes lie beneath all acts of hatred.

The pity is that often, politicians and their ardent supporters are dexterous enough to turn around and say that it was the development mantra that worked not the communal plank. It remains to be seen what explanation the Shiv Sena will offer if it manages to save Maharashtra from the inept governance provided by the Vilasrao Deshmukh government in the next Assembly election.

Such glib talk might con the gullible but not those who can see the deep-rooted danger behind such vote-games.

Whether it is communal polarisation or regional divide, or the urban vs rural, forward caste vs backward/scheduled caste struggle, each blow ultimately hurts the image of an India that is secular, equitable and a level playing ground for all classes, castes and communities.

It is tempting to hope that the day all Indians have access to the kind of education that brings not only knowledge but also enlightenment, voters will escape the clutches of self-seeking politicians. But, alas, ground realities tell a different story.

(Response may be sent to rasheeda@thehindu.co.in)

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