Temple & Modi : A Dominant Social Force

For BJP supporters there was no parallel to LK Advani’s rath yatra in 1990 which propelled BJP firmly into Indian politics. But after the Pran Pratishtha ceremony in Ayodhya which became a socio-religious-political event, the old sentiment of rath yatra is left far behind now. Prime Minister Narendra Modi who is the protege of LK Advani proved his determination further. BJP supporters are firmly propagating that post-1947 India hasn’t seen this kind of sentiment in the country which united all Hindus. In the Modi era, the Ram moment also became a Modi moment, and we can say that PM Modi has showed his mettle in this event management. The consecration of the Ram Lalla idol will further thrust the BJP in 2024 Lok Sabha elections as this event saw religious fervor, media frenzy, and high emotional sentiment across the country. 

The Lord Ram’s temple & PM Modi have turned into a dominant social force as well. A persona has been continuously built around PM Modi by his supporters after the abrogation of Article 370, the Balakot air strike, and after hosting the G20 summit in India. With all this happening in PM Modi's term, he has secured a place in the history books. In the democratic setup many believe in him as king of Hindu hearts after PM declared that 1000 years from now people will talk of January 22 as a date of Hindu pride and emotion after performing rituals in the Lord Ram’s temple in Ayodhya. Previously, the coalition politics of NDA forced it to go soft on the Ram temple, but PM Modi blurred the line between State and religion in his era and infused new energy in supporters of Hindutva. The temple construction matched the 2024 election calendar after the favorable decision of the Supreme Court to build a temple in Ayodhya. The carefully chosen month, with Sadhu Samaj in the audience cheering the PM Modi has given a new lease of life to BJP to go ahead in 2024 Lok Sabha elections.

With temple inauguration PM Modi has given a call for “Ram Rajya” which reflects that India will ensure equal treatment to all citizens with no fear for other communities, especially minorities. The question is - will this match the minority's mood in the nation? In the last 10 years, we saw many time weaponization of ‘Ram’ and minorities being threatened leading to communal tensions in some cities of India. Also, we have seen many instances where hate speeches were made for a social and economic boycott of minorities. PM must ensure that in his third term (which is likely to happen) the legacy he is trying to build should not become a hollow promise for minorities in India as many BJP workers are openly making calls for Hinduism as the official religion of the Indian republic which creates a toxic social environment. This also gives tools in the hands of fundamentalists who work only to create polarisation in society. Though these things become ‘headline-grabbing’ in politics but whenever the political system stirs social divide it always leads to differences which at times leads to hundreds of deaths in the name of religion. Amidst the whole thrust put by the BJP on PM Modi’s personality to secure hat trick for BJP government, delivering on security for minorities can be the beginning of a new India where an inclusive nature symbolizes the political achievement of any party rather than just a 'soft target' of receiving votes in the election season.  

Four Years With Covid 19

As of 1 March 2024, there were 1001 active Covid 19 infection cases in India according to the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India. For almost four years now, we have been watching the number of newly infected vs. the number of recovered and discharged patients each day in India. It seems Covid 19 statistics have become part of our lives. But have you ever met someone who got Covid 19 infection six times in the last four years? I met one-person last week who recovered from a cold and flu and while telling me this, he laughed that he should be a ‘subject of research’ because in the last 4 years during annual seasonal outbreaks in the winter months, his rapid screening tests always gave him Covid 19 positive reports. Fear was absent in his eyes. This incident took me back four years when fear ruled in the name of Covid 19. Do you remember March of 2020?

I remember that I was involved in a heritage conservation program in the first week of March 2020. Interestingly, after the event a retired IAS officer said that there was a ‘coronavirus’ going around in India so keep a check and plan your next schedule accordingly. And he said it's a pretty ‘serious virus’ at least for ‘retired people’ and everyone laughed together. However, I reassured him that it was nothing to worry about and that we would probably conduct a session in a few weeks with him being the resource person again. Well, I was wrong.  The virus took the shape of a complete global pandemic and on March 24, 2020, we faced lockdown. Soon, ‘coronavirus’ became ‘Covid 19’ that brought the entire planet to a halt. And this halt made a big impact on our lives. There was no contact with anything or anyone. No handholding or patting someone on the back. During that lockdown, we realized how very important is our mental health and how important it is for us to be connected to friends and family or be part of a crowd at a marriage function.

We all are ‘survivors’ of this pandemic where devastation was the only word explainable and attributable to Covid 19. The death from Covid 19 remains an ongoing and serious risk. Many people died during the Omicron wave than in the supposedly deadlier Delta wave. Then came the new Covid 19 variant JN.1 with new increased volume of reinfection and new symptoms and deaths as well that caused the most concern. This has resulted into long covid, with symptoms like fatigue, memory loss, chest pain, diarrhea, and rapid heart rates. Some researchers have suggested that it can lead to a higher risk of lung problems, fatigue, diabetes, and certain other health problems which is result of long covid only. A lot of materialistic things are still not affordable for us, but ‘life’ should be taken as the biggest luxury after seeing all this.  Perhaps we learned to appreciate the many things we took for granted after lockdowns.

No one wants that loneliness to return to our lives. No one wants to stay in that isolation, especially our elders. The pandemic has made us better people, and more willing to lend a helping hand. Covid 19 brought the societies together which were drifting away due to introduction of technology in our life. We learned that humility and kindness should reflect our lives. However, the sad part is how quickly we forget and now no fear or sense of threat prevails in our minds. So, this should not end up with us just being a ‘survivor’. It’s important to remember that we battled loneliness, sick children, parents, in-laws and so much more. Today as we stand, we need to stay hopeful that we continue to thrive and live life full of community and new experiences. For all this, don’t forget to thank your God who helped you through this!