Power: The Corrupter

 

“The power to lead is the power to mislead, and the power to mislead is the power to destroy.”

    - Thomas S. Monson

“The measure of a man is what he does with his power.”

                                                                                                                - Plato

 

Hi, Everyone! With the independence of India, the political scene within the Congress fold had changed considerably. There was a shift in power. Prime Minister Nehru was in a strong position. He was no more the Second-in-Command; he was no more second to the Mahatma.

·       Throughout his political career Nehru had acquiesced in many of Gandhi’s suggestions and schemes, just to hang on to the power. He knew as well as the next man that to oppose the Mahatma was to commit political suicide. Now he had acquired that power. He didn’t need the Mahatma.

·       Of late years, especially after Noakhali, it was getting difficult to keep a lid on Gandhi’s sexual peccadillos—his predilection for young girls, even those from his own family. Gandhi himself was ready to talk of the “purity” of his “experiments.”

·       Gandhi had refused to pay respect to the flag of India as his charkha was out-voted in favor of the chakra. He had ranted and raved re that in his Harijan.

·       Gandhi’s latest debacle was interfering in Government policy and twisting the Government arm into handing the fifty-five crore Rupees to Pakistan.

Yes, he had only nuisance value for Nehru and the Government of India. In Lester Pearson's biography he says Nehru had told him that Gandhi was a "hypocritical old man."

Gandhi was no more the cossetted and spoilt favorite of the British. He was now an albatross around Nehru’s neck.

·       Could this be why there was such abysmal lack of protective security for the Mahatma? Even after the bombing event? 

One is hard put to it to not think it. The police of free India were the same that worked so brilliantly for the British. In the British times, hardly a scheme was allowed to materialize successfully, so efficiently did the police work! What changed then in free India?

·       Was it the orders they received?

Points to note:

·       Morarji Desai had the utter nerve to sanctimoniously point unjust fingers at Savarkar for complicity in Gandhi’s murder, when one word from him was all that was required to prevent Gandhi’s death.

·       Government of India arrested 20,000 people and tortured so many after the death of the Mahatma. Could they not have arrested a few to prevent the death of the Mahatma?

They had ten days, one culprit in custody, and direct information but did nothing to save the Mahatma.

·       After the death of the Mahatma, the Government of India galvanized into action and ruthlessly put to death the name and reputation of Savarkar—and were only prevented from putting him to death by the prevailing of justice in free India—and annihilated the Hindutva-minded people and their work.

This is why I call it their diabolical masterstroke. So many birds all killed with one stone—killed with the bullet that killed Gandhi.

Anurupa