Why it took him so long to silence the noisemakers in his party only he can tell, but we are glad that the BJP Chief Amit Shah has at long last sought to end this pointless cacophony over beef and related non-issues. Nothing can be gained by giving the likes of Sakshi Maharaj, Sangeet Som and quite a few others a free rein. The more they speak, the more they muddy the waters, and, thus, make things difficult for the middle-roaders in the ruling party. The mandate, it should be noted, was for development, for a clean and corruption-free government and not for such peripheral issues such as beef-eating and cow protection. Yes, given the cultural heritage of the country, cow is sacred to the majority community. Yes, a vast majority of the States already have laws making cow slaughter and beef-eating illegal. Yet, cow and everything connected with it cannot be allowed to hold centrestage while all else is relegated into the background. If the BJP-run states want to run cow shelters, they are most welcome. But they cannot inflict their narrow and even retrograde vision on the entire people, on the entire country. Bread and butter concerns of the people, including those of the vast majority of Hindus, ought to get priority over these diversionary noises. Modern-minded Hindus, educated Hindus, cultured and liberal Hindus et al cannot be pleased with the unseemly goings-on in the political arena over beef. It is most unfortunate that the BJP Chief Minister of Haryana Manohar Lal Khattar should have warned beef-eaters that they have no place in the country. Coming from a chief minister whose state boasts of a Millennium City within the municipal limits of Gurgaon, this was indeed a strange statement. But then the problem with the BJP is that its RSS-centric base consists of good but simple-minded people with an ancient world-view. They mean well. But generally lacking completely in a modern education and an exposure to English media, they stay rooted in their little world of religious and other prejudices. Contrary to the vile propaganda of the left-liberal critics, the RSS-BJP cadres are by and large decent people — they are not extortionists and blackmailers — but thanks to a lack of modern education they peddle ancient biases and prejudices as answer to present-day existentialist concerns. The partition still preys on their minds, giving them an anti-Muslim image. The secularist class for its own selfish ends has exaggerated the anti-Muslim element of the RSS-BJP for enticing the votes of the minority community. Indeed, it will be a great national service if sensible leaders on either side of the religious divide got tougher to allay their mutual fears. Significantly, the beef politics is a byproduct of the anti-Muslim bias. In the 21st century obsessing with the culinary habits of the people does appear to be a sheer waste of time and energy. Instead, these leaders have better things to do. To begin with, delivering good governance to the people.
Also, both Shah and Prime Minister Modi err when they give short shrift to the liberal, English-language media. It may have been okay in Gujarat where the dominant ethos was entirely different. The national conversation can no longer be conducted in parochial terms. The country as a whole might still get its news from Hindi and other regional language newspapers and television channels but the tone and tenor of national conversation is set by the English media, print and television. Had Shah paid heed to the plethora of comment in the English press he would not have waited this long to impose the gag order on the loose cannons in his party. These people might be loyal foot soldiers of the BJP but because they lack modern impulses and thought processes they remain frogs in the Hindutva well. Besides, the key elements of Hindutva surely should mean ridding the community of its caste prejudices and superstitions, and inculcating a spirit of gender equality, value for education, honesty and truth, etc. In fact, what Hindus urgently need is a moral revolution which makes honest, decent citizens of them all. What they eat depends on the region they come from and their social and economic background. That should be left to them to decide. But where the likes of Sakshi Maharaj, Balyan, Mahesh Sharma, et al can help is by their undertaking a cleansing mission to rid Hindus of their ingrained character flaws, superstitions, prejudices, etc. Live and let live ought to be their guiding principle. Now that Shah has cracked the whip, he should ensure that the fringe in the party no longer embarrasses him by speaking out of turn. We will keep our fingers firmly crossed.
