The curious case of Kishan Kanhaiya

I have been reading a bit about the JNU controversy. In fact, I was in Delhi when it happened, and watching the events unfold on TV, I thought it was an usual student fracas which would go away. But, surprisingly, it hasn't.

Putting things into perspective, balancing both ends of the spectrum, I feel rather perturbed at the turn of events. Here is a student leader from Bihar, ensconced in the comfortable environment of JNU, who supposedly took up cudgels on behalf of a convicted terrorist, and fell foul of the establishment for this. And here’s a group of “nationalists” marching with the Indian flag and beating up the “ anti-national.”

Keeping these heavy issues of patriotism and sedition aside, lets reflect, in a lighter vein, on what Kanhaiya Kumar would have done, had he not sprinted into the limelight like this. In fact,  I have a slight hunch. Probably he would have been in the academic forum, teaching at JNU on weekdays, gorging at Ganga mess on weeknights and sipping coffee at the Indian Habitat Centre on weekends. Or better still, open a dhaba inside the JNU campus.

I know one such chap who did the same. This chap, who was a prominent student leader in his early JNU days, got married to a classmate and settled down on campus, opening a dhaba, which served excellent food. “Panditji” ,they called him. I used to enjoy the food there, back in 2007.

Probably, Mr. Kishan Kanhaiya would have had to follow in Panditji’s footsteps, and settle down in mundane domesticity, had he not got into this row. Instead, he chose to hog the limelight. Suddenly, the hitherto unknown student leader, lurking in the shadow of anonymity,  is the hot topic of discussion across the nation. Deliberate tactic? Do we smell a rat here?

No offence intended, but JNU students are not exactly the stellar voices of Indian democracy. Poster-mongering and sloganeering in an idyllic environment, interspersed with waxing and waning interest about the country and its affairs, depending on what the flavour of the season is, do not exactly qualify as essential qualities to be the custodians of our collective conscience. I know it because I have seen them from up close. Hedonistically close, if I recall correctly from my Munirka days. Where have they been when the nation has needed them the most? I do not recall any outrage over the Pathankot attacks. When Delhi and Mumbai were rocked by blasts in 2008, I do not recall students from JNU protesting.The  coldly calculated outrage over Afzal Guru, at a  time when the issue had been settled for good,  stinks.  And to top it, the event was organized under a false pretext of “organizing a poetry reading “, to quote Makarand Paranjape, a member of JNU Teachers' Association. Why such subterfuge by the self-appointed guardians of our conscience and morality? Because they knew that their hypocrisy and double standards would be exposed?

On the other hand, there is now the possibility that the JNU “sedition” video was doctored, probably with the help of news channels. So where does that lead us? To the fact that our emotions are very easy to manipulate, and news channels are becoming pros at this. If this chap has indeed made inflammatory statements, he should be grilled. But let’s wait for the court’s action. And while we do so, let’s equally condemn those who mourn for Afzal Guru. I remember the cold horror with which we saw our Parliament, the highest seat of Indian democracy, being attacked in December 2001. If some misguided, self- righteous, self- pompous people say the Supreme Court and the nation state is being intolerant in hanging those who fight the Indian nation and all that it stands for, then yes, I am proud of such intolerance. It is nothing but patent hypocrisy to talk about “free speech” in the context of defending a convicted terrorist who sought to paralyse the very institution that grants this free speech, namely our Parliament.  Enough of this “intolerance” bullshit- it is becoming sickening and stale now. The USA and most of the Western states did not get where they are today, by being “ tolerant” of anti-national activities. The line has to be drawn somewhere.

And then we have the eternal poster boy of Indian political tantrums, Rahul baba , true to form, quickly making political capital of the incident. We have journos like Rajdeep Sardesai waxing eloquent on how he loves to be branded “anti-nationalist” and how he enjoys beef steaks.

Come off it, aren’t we stretching things a bit too far? I used to eat beef at one time, but never wore it on my sleeves. What does eating or not eating beef have to do with Indian nationalism?

On the other end of the spectrum, the ABVP and the infamous Patiala House lawyers are making a fool out of themselves by engaging in “nationalistic” fervor. I am sure they can do better things for the nation than beating up an arrested (not convicted) persons inside court premises. Where is law and order going if lawyers, purportedly the custodians of justice, behave like this? And where is the famed “discipline” of the Sangh Parivar?

At the end of the day, I do have a feeling that “Panditji “(if he is still around in JNU, God bless him) must be smiling wryly, thinking,” Here goes one more firebrand.” Kanhaiya Kumar may or may not be an effective student leader, but he has certainly ensured that if he ever did open a dhaba inside the JNU premises, he wouldn’t be short of clientele. Wasn’t it Goebbels, that infamous Nazi, who said that “negative publicity is better than no publicity”?

With such morons (on both sides of the warline ) hogging the headlines, who needs mundane entertainment? Let’s switch off the comedy shows on the idiot tube and watch this Great Indian Political Circus unfold.  And while at it, what does “the nation want to know” now, Mr.Arnab Goswami? The art of earning TRPs and publicity out of non-events? Jai ho !