Support Modi -But Not Blindly !!

As expected ,there has been criticism of the PMs speech .Nothing unusual –and I am glad that there are opponents who keep him on his toes .We obviously need to be alert –all the more since Modi can sway the masses with his great oratorical skills .He plays to the gallery .He snaps his fingers ,he spreads his arms ,he becomes emotional , he exploits his “chai wallah” background ( how are you Mani Shankar Aiyyar ?) ,he lowers his voice to a whisper and trails off !! He wears good clothes .His effect is blinding –as one can see with the response he gets – frenzied crowds -,some crying ,others dancing ,all clapping and chanting “ Modi ,Modi”.
There is a reason for this frenzy .The previous government left everyone disappointed .Scam after after hit it ,and the PM looked so helpless .There was a National Advisory Council ( a bunch of retired bureaucrats, NGO beneficiaries and politicians ),who actually ran the government from 10 Janpath .It was pathetic .I am re reading the fabulous book “ The Last Moghul” written by William Dalrymple .The picture Dalrymple paints of Bahadur Shah Zafar , reminds of MMS .Old ,infirm ,helpless ,and allowing others to eat into his powers .

But power abhors vacuum .With the fall of Man Mohan Singh ,Modi stepped him .With the qualities I listed above .But here is the catch –we musnt let him do what Hitler did to Germany after the First World War .There was vacuum in Germany as well.The President was Hindenberg who came to power at the age of 78 .He kept catipulating to Hitlers demands and finally Hitler became what he did .Hindenberg refused to take risks and swore to the tenets of the German Constitution which was running a government which abided by the humiliating treaty of Versailles .

We must keep Modi on his toes .Oherwise he may outreach himself like Hitler was allowed to .However criticizing him for everything he does is uncalled for .I see the future of India in “Digital India”. I saw some people criticizing it saying that the poor has got nothing to do with it .And that Google and Microsoft will milk India .No –let them criticize .People laughed when Kennedy said that America would land a man on moon !! We also must think ahead .Every village must have high speed internet connectivity .Every child must have computers and through it ,access to knowledge .What else can one do when there are no schools ? We must evolve systems that evaluate a child through the internet .We can t go on with schools having boundaries and classrooms .For every child admitted ,there are 200 parents staring at a notice saying “ Sorry we are full” .Have you ever accessed the net and seen a notice saying “ Sorry ,you are in the queue” .

Therein lies the answer .Lets tap into something which is limitless and has no boundaries .Lets keep Modi on his toes and support his vision of at least a digital India .Call it theatrics ,call it hard selling himself ,call it “dramabaazi” ,call him a “pheku”. Whatever ,lets exploit his great strength and that is –he is making sure that India is being seen and heard by people who matter .!!