Book: In Search of Ram Rajya — A Journey Through UP Politics
Author: Manjula Lal
Publisher: Readomania
432 pages
Price: Rs 399
Twenty five years after the Babri Masjid was demolished by a frenzied mob in Ayodhya, Lord Ram is back at the centre of Uttar Pradesh (UP) politics, as the recent results of the 2017 assembly elections have shown. That makes this book by journalist Manjula Lal a timely one. A mix of academic research and ground reportage, it hit the stands ahead of last month's results and is on the dot in its analysis of the voters, who have rejected leaders who wanted to leverage victory in UP for greater power and glory in the 'Delhi Durbar'. The book devotes a chapter each to the Bharatiya Janata Party, Samajwadi Party, Bahujan Samaj Party and Congress, chronicling the rise and fall of these parties since independence.
Lal makes the point that the youth have great aspirations and tend to break the shackles of communalism and casteism for the sake of development. While it is clear from the results that the youth in UP have shunned casteism by rallying around the BJP, it is hard to believe that they have broken the shackles of communalism. Experts who analysed the current results agree that the voters were highly polarised. The BJP's constant reference to the so-called Muslim appeasement of previous so-called secular governments did cut ice on the ground. The author is also harsh on Jawaharlal Nehru, accusing him of suppressing Hindu sentiments and assuring the Muslims they were safe in India. It is true that the Constitution originally had no reference to secularism, which was introduced only in 1976 through the 42nd Amendment. But with the Preamble incorporating guarantees of religious freedom, freedom of conscience, equality and non-discrimination, the Constitution was imbued with the secular spirit.
Sir Muhamad Iqbal, the famous poet often held responsible for forwarding the idea of a separate nation for Muslims, saw in Ram the role model for a nationalist movement. Iqbal described Lord Ram as the Imam-e-Hind, the spiritual leader of India. The Hindu right, on the other hand, consciously projected Ram as a warrior king, ignoring his philosophy and learning.
This book, while a great addition to the political history of UP, should have avoided linking its analysis to elections, which makes the chapters read like journalistic pieces that lose their relevance with time, rather than as a treatise to be preserved for posterity.
