L K Advani says entire Bharat, that is India, is 'Ram-maya (lost in the name of Ram)...As a matter of fact, he is being modest, Jan 22, 2024 is set to be a global event -- mega event.
From Washington DC to Paris to Sydney, events have been planned in various parts of the world to mark the Ram temple consecration ceremony on January 22. These programmes are either being organised by the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) or are being undertaken by Hindu diaspora groups.
VHP joint general secretary Swami Vigyananand said the VHP had “direct contacts” in over 60 countries and that it has planned programmes with the Hindu community organisations there.
The programmes will include rath yatras, car rallies or a prabhat pheris (marches undertaken while singing bhajans in morning hours). The consecration ceremony will also be live- streamed at temples in different countries.
In Paris, a Ram Rath Yatra will be carried out from the Place de la Capelle, an arena in the northern part of the city, to the iconic Eiffel Tower.
There would also be “chanting of the Shree Ram Dhun, devotional songs, cultural programmes and prasad distribution” at the Eiffel tower.
Rath yatra will start after a puja and a vishwakalyan yagna and pass through notable Parisian landmarks such as the Le Republique, Musee de Louver and Arc de Triomphe.
Indians living in France will be joining the historic and momentous occasion of Shri Ram Mandir inauguration in Ayodhya by organising a Ram Rath Yatra across Paris and a large scale celebration at the Eiffel Tower.
The Shri Ram Janmbhoomi Teerth Kshetra says: “It is a blessing for every rambhakt across boundaries to witness the pran pratishtha of Bhagwan Shri Ramlalla Sarkar at his janmshthan in Ayodhya. This cherished moment belongs to rambhakts worldwide, a moment when the hearts of a billion people shall beat as one.”
Devotees in New York will assemble at Times Square on January 22.
In Washington DC, the VHP has organised a car and bike rally on January 20 at the Shri Bhakta Anjaneya Temple.
A VHP volunteer from its DC chapter, Animesh Shukla, took to social media platforms to say: “On January 20, we are having an amazing event expecting more than 1,000 people there. We want the entire Indian community to come together and celebrate this holy and auspicious occasion which is going to come only once in lifetime for all of us.”
In Australia, programmes will be organised at Parramatta Park in Western Sydney and Kingsley Park in Melbourne.
Other cities in Australia where VHP will hold programmes with Hindu communities include Brisbane, Perth, Adelaide and New South Wales.
“Around 25 to 50 organisations are collectively organising the programmes in Australia,” Vigyananand said.
In Africa, the VHP will organise car rally and other programmes in Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Mauritius, Ghana, Nigeria and Mozambique. Similar events have been planned in Buckingham, Bankok, Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, Jakarta, and Bali.
VHP may be taking the lead. But it has become a programme of the Hindu samaj. This is a historic occasion for the Hindu community.
Did I prove myself right ?? ::
How 'Opposition Unity' can be self-defeating for Congress?
May 27/2023 .... Reflections !!
New Delhi
The so-called 'Opposition unity' is now a buzz phrase in Indian socio-political
context. The mission is 'hate Modi' and so let us do anything to everything to ensure ouster of the Modi government.
It is this spirit of motivated politics that is guiding the opposition parties to stay away from the historic occasion of dedication of the New Parliament building. They are staying away from it because President Droupadi Murmu is not inaugurating the newly installed iconic building.
The politics of 'untouchability' has touched a new height.
The Congress forgets its history pretty fast. It forgets how the Crown Prince treated India's Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and a President in office when an Ordinance was torn into pieces at the Press Club of India.
They forget once a President in office (created by Congress) had said - "If my leader had asked me to sweep her floor I would have done so, but she decided to make me the President".
Now, the Leftists - the self-styled 'ever virtuos'. The Brahminical style of politics the communists played -- enjoying power without responsibilities - have rendered them Zero-member strong in their once upon a time forte West Bengal. Yet no lesson learnt, as the know-all self-centred ego is too much.
For the election of President of India in 2007, they said Shivraj Patil is not acceptable because of his 'soft approach' towards BJP -- but Patil was allowed to be India's Home Minister till 9/11 happened.
They also said 'make Hamid Ansari - India's Vice President; and 'make anyone the President - we do not mind'.
The Congress readily obliged.
Nevertheless the issue now is the 'Opposition unity' and can they stick together with permutations and combinations and all cost-benefit analyses to ensure Modi's ouster?
Before we go deeper into the debate; one is tempted to observe that the so-called Opposition unity is actually pro-regional satraps and is essentially against the interest of Congress. How?
In West Bengal, state's most pro-minority Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee is today nervous because the Muslim vote that was the 'key factor' in saving her in the 2021 assembly elections could be slowly shifting towards the Congress-Communists combine.
A few months ago, the Congress defeated her nominee in a by-election in Muslim-dominated Sagardighi assembly constituency of Murshidabad district.
So here 'opposition unity' for Lok Sabha elections would mean --- Congress/Left will not field any candidate against Mamata's nominees.
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| Bengal's 'Congress face' and chief detractor of Mamata |
The Trinamool leadership is more irked by the fact that the Indian Secular Front (ISF) formed an influential cleric of the shrine of Furfura Sharif in Hooghly district Abbas Siddiqui is also with the Left-Congress combine and ISF often attacks her.
So for Mamata -- opposition unity means -- Congress and even Communists should not contest as many seats as they want. In other words, she is keen to win those segments which are traditionally Congress or Left strongholds.
(On Jan 13, 2024 I.N.D.I Alliance virtual meeting, Trinamool chief Mamata Banerjee had stayed away.)
Similarly, 'self-centred' opposition-unity politics is being pursued by Arvind Kejriwal, whose rise into Delhi's electoral graph from the beginning has been at the cost of Congress. The AAP has also benefited at the cost of Congress in Punjab and in the western state of Gujarat too, it has damaged Congress prospects.
Thus, for Kejriwal -- the so-called 'Opposition unity' will mean Congress should not contest polls in Delhi and Punjab.
More such scenarios could be explained. But the moral of the story is these could all be part of attempts and conspiracies to weaken the Congress further by forcing it to contest in a much lesser number of seats in 2024.
The big issue, can Congress see through these games? Yes and No -- both. Because the problem for Congress is -- it does not have many options at hand. Left to itself and Congress contesting around 400 seats if not more, it does not have the chance of doing miracles -- even by the standard of 2009 when it won 200 plus seats.
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| Reluctant 'Netas' of Jan 13, 2024 !! |
Among its friends -- who can ditch the Congress also includes Samajwadi Party and its chief Akhilesh Yadav.
This UP-based party has lost all sheen of its famous MY (Muslim-Yadav card). In 2014 and 2019 polls, it could win only five Lok Sabha seats.
Its performance in just concluded Urban Local Body polls too was not impressive. Hence it needs some tricks out of the box and one of them could be 'no candidate' by Congress in most Uttar Pradesh seats.
(On Jan 13, 2024 Opposition meet, Mallikarjun Kharge was 'reluctant' chairperson-suggested for the alliance while Nitish Kumar too did not show the enthusiasm to be so called 'convener' after he was indirectly (and in a bad taste) snubbed by Mamata Banerjee and Arvind Kejriwal)
Among others, BSP of Ms Mayawati is hardly excited about the idea of 'Opposition unity' as she thinks having won 10 in 2019 Lok Sabha seats on her own strengths; she can improve her performance and that will be crucial.
Of course the Congress could always trust the Left parties at the national level because they may not be too keen to allow Mamata Banerjee to become Prime Minister of India.
Moreover, they always found a Congress government in the centre 'depending on communists support' as a more acceptable phenomenon.
But given an opportunity they will not mind a non-entity like H D Deve Gowda become India's Prime Minister just because in such a situation their bargaining chips have better currency values.
For Congress, the outfits like NCP and DMK will stick to it but the same cannot be ever said of outfits such as JD(U) of Nitsh Kumar.
The Bihar chief minister wants to fulfill his lifetime ambition by using Congress as a mere stepping stone.
Thus when the opposition parties talk of 'unity' of purpose and the road maps vis-a-vis 2024, what they have in mind is a Federal Front and Congress will be forced to 'extend outside support or join the government with a few prized portfolios'.
This was the experiment of 1996 when first Deve Gowda and later I K Gujral became Prime Minister(s).
In 1998, the BJP emerged single largest party winning 182 seats. Post-Kargil too, the BJP could win the same number of seats and the Congress tally was 114.
In 2018, Late Arun Jaitley summed up these Federal Front and 'opposition unity' tales pretty well when he said, the 2014 elections "conclusively established" that in the New India chemistry will score over arithmetic when it comes to deciding the country’s destiny.
"A federal front is a failed idea. Such a front with its contradictions, sooner or later, loses its balance and equilibrium. Remembering 1996-98 as perhaps one of the worst periods of governance....".
In the run up to the 2024 battle both in terms of both arithmetic and chemistry - things favour the BJP.
A stable government under a Prime Minister (Narendra Modi) who has delivered on his promises as a catalyst of development will be more acceptable to Indians.
"Can the World's Largest Democracy Endure Another Five Years of a Modi Government?," wrote 'Time' magazine before the 2019 general elections.
They can write the same headlines even in 2024.
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| Deve Gowda and other stalwarts |
For our part - playing objective analysts - we can twist it a little and ask, "Can the World's Largest Democracy endure the next Five Years of a Deve Gowda type government?".
Paradoxically the answer could be traced in another article in the 'Time' magazine that says -- "Modi has directed unprecedented amounts of money toward the country’s seemingly endless need for new infrastructure. Construction of roads, highways, public transport and airports have sharply increased the country’s long-term economic potential".
ends
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