Subhas Chandra Pattanayak
When Rome was burning during the great fire in AD 64, her ruler Nero was playing the fiddle while watching it and singing about the devastation, says Historian Suetonius. The world has not been able as yet to determine if this is the real history or a mere rumor. But, the reality that we are facing is that, when India’s general public is devastated by sudden demonetization of all currency notes of Rs.500/- and Rs.1000/- denomination by the Prime Minister in the midnight of November 8, and the banking system in India has collapsed, account-holders are unable to withdraw their required amount of money, aged people are collapsing while standing in tormenting queues before the banks with withdrawal slips in hands, patients are dying in medical compounds without treatment due to want of money as ATMs are not functioning and Banks are beyond reach despite deposits, millions of daily wage earners and dependents on daily marketing of essential commodities are suffering starvation, Prime Minister Modi, like the infamous Nero, is most pleased for his days in Japan, enjoying his brags over demonetization.
Sad.
However, in my previous article on the subject, I had raised the issue of India’s enforced status of autocracy which Modi has deliberately pushed the country into. The demonic demonetization has been done by the Prime Minister by his own decision, keeping the Union Council of Ministers in complete dark about it. His modus operandi is menacing, inasmuch as this particular action has quashed the primacy of collective leadership a democracy is based upon. He has reduced India to his laboratory of personal whims and undemocratic designs. Whether or not India could be converted into a safe place for evolution of a Hitler, who can use his rhetoric to force the masses into sufferings in hope of imagined better days, is the main purpose of this experimentation, it appears.
We have a President in Mr. Pranab Mukherjee, who, as a minister was docile partner of Manmohan Singh in his design to promote American interest in India. It is not that he is not seeing how maximum majority of Indians is suffering due to sudden demonetization sans any real official remedy available to the people. But, he has welcomed Modi’s action, as if he is more eager to show his readiness to support him. Has he a hidden design to seek a second term in the Presidential chair? Otherwise why he has supported such a drastic step that has quashed the relevance of the Cabinet and has destroyed the tranquility of the county like never before? India has never witnessed such widespread anarchy so far.
Both the President and the Prime Minister must tell us, as to why such a drastic step has been taken without the approval of the national cabinet.
Right-wingers starting from Vajpayee to Manmohan Singh have converted our democracy into plutocracy. And, plutocracy was the reality till November 8. But, by ignoring the Cabinet in the matter of demonetization, the PM has caused us the pain to fear that, our sovereign Republic has been converted into de facto autocracy by Mr. Modi.
The President should tell the people what really is happening; because, the government runs in his name.