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I do not particularly hate the RSS but K S Sudershan’s (RSS chief) recent outburst to attribute blame against past leaders has befuddled me. First, Advani raked up the issue of Jinnah’s secularity which I feel was a moot point considering the consequences of his demands. Pakistan is a reality today and nothing in the immediate future is going to change the sovereign status of the Islamic nation. Now Sudershan has taken up Advani’s mantle and is blaming Nehru for the country’s problems while praising his daughter Indira Gandhi. The only standard he uses is the foreign policy angle and credits Indira Gandhi for standing firm during the 1971 war against Pakistan. Admittedly, Nehru might have failed miserably on all fronts (in the hindsight) but undoubtedly, Indira Gandhi caused greater havoc. The national emergency in 1975 has to be the darkest chapter in Indian democracy and the nationalization efforts kicked back India few decades while other Asian countries were laying down a foundation for a great economic leap. I believe, we simply missed the bus then and only lately have we shown any inclination of catching up. The Jan Sangh backed by RSS in those times weren’t too gung-ho about privatization either and the Janata Party’s brief rule after the Emergency led to IBM and Coca-Cola leaving the country, effectively harboring a feeling of distrust and anti-business.
Today if the rest of the world is noticing India, it isn’t because of its foreign policy characteristics (much leaves to be desired on that front too) but because of its economic gains and potential to do much more. The waves of liberalization are only beginning to arrive on Indian shores and there is plenty to do. So if we are playing the blame-game, lets at least blame the right (errr…wrong) people. There are plenty of people in the current administration (look to your ‘left’) that you can rightly blame for our economic woes.
by Patrix | on Monday, June 20th, 2005 at 12:30 pm | 
India, Politicking . You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.
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June 20th, 2005 at 11:56 pm reply
Hear, hear. I’m sick and tired of politicians talking incessantly about the dead and gone. There’s a lot more that needs doing in the country.