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| Hey Ram, Gandhigiri gone | | | Every year when nation celebrates Gandhi Jayanti –Mahatma (Mohandas Karamchand) Gandhi’s birth anniversary –our politicians and the little wannabes line up for the photo ops. It is being put bluntly that they line up for the photo ops because the intentions of the majority of them are clearly visible as they race against each other getting noticed while paying tributes to the Bapu. The irony, however, is that the majority in our society is completely unaware of the principles Bapu espoused and those who read or heard what Bapu stood for observe his teachings in complete contempt. What all people these days know about Mahatma is that he was one lean old man who brought India freedom from the British shackles. A recent four-part series article in a leading national daily by a celebrated journalist, parliamentarian and thinker Arun Shourie rightly argued that sale statistics of Bapu’s book ‘My Experiments with Truth’ in 1940s and 50s could have put today’s newspapers in shame. In an era of no publicity or marketing, Bapu’s books would go off the bookshop shelves in days of their hitting there. There have been very few examples of newspaper of books registering sales as Bapu’s books did. Those were the days when people wanted to emulate Gandhian principles and imbibe them in their daily life to become better and ideal citizens. Now are the times that Bapu’s books or completely off the shelf. Off the shelf is normally a term used to refer to some book which sells very fast but ‘My Experiments with Truth’ is off the shelf because it is no more in demand. Just a day ahead of the Gandhi Jayanti, some scribes from this newspaper took a round of some two dozen odd bookshops in Jammu city and Bapu’s autobiography was found at only three of them. The salesman made starling revelations. They said that the books were part of the stock that was procured years back and rarely one or two customers in a year ask for Bapu’s autobiography. In recent years it was only a Sanjay Dutt starrer Bollywood movie which brought Gandhi’s ideas to the public debate, though in a trivial manner. Last year, the Congress party had harped on Munna Bhai MBBS movie to promote Gandhigiri among its cadres. However, this passion fizzled out after the elections were over. Among the essential teachings and ideals of the Gandhi were secularism, tolerance and non-violence. In the din of loud slogans which we will hear tomorrow’s at City’s Gandhi Chowk (Satwari Crossing) or Shaheedi Chowk (the Congress headquarters) the missing discourse, of course, will be about the essential teachings of the Mahatma. With apologies in anticipation to one and all, none of the leaders who are up to harp on Gandhi’s ideals actually practice them in personal life or promote in public life. Incidents like Shopian and Shastri Nagar murder and the following series of politics and crime over them just underline the fact that how far the society has gone from Gandhi’s ideals. Even those who call themselves as the ‘Gandhians’ are these days seen flaunting with the status rather than doing any thing practical. Mahatma Gandhi would be ashamed of today’s Gandhigiri.
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