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Baba Ramdev is the guru of political levitation

Ramdev has used the state's discomfiture at his posturing to maximum effect By Nilima Pathak, Correspondent Published: 00:00 June 11, 2011

The hunger strike will help out my obese brothers and sisters to slim down and also bring back the countrys wealth, says Baba Ramdev. New Delhi: In a recently held opinion poll, a national daily asked it's readers Do you believe people like Baba Ramdev or Anna Hazare can really make a difference? While 72 per cent said Yes' the rest said No'. Yet another opinion poll carried earlier this week asked Was forcible eviction of Baba Ramdev and the followers from Ramlila Grounds justified? This time a phenomenal 96 per cent said No'. There's no denying the fact that though yoga guru Baba Ramdev enjoyed a massive following not only in India but also in the US, the UK, Canada, Mauritius and Nepal, the corruption charges registered against him all of a sudden and the atrocities unleashed on his followers has created a sympathy wave for him. Indefinite hunger strike Ramdev's threat to go on an indefinite hunger strike at New Delhi's Ramlila Grounds to highlight corruption elicited a heavy-handed response. His "non-cooperation" agitation saw police set on sleeping followers who included women and children. This abrasive approach has certainly boomeranged on the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance government especially with the Supreme Court asking it to justify its midnight swoop. The majority of people in the country, no doubt, are disillusioned and disappointed with the serial scandals that have tainted the government. But Ramdev was not all that notable a name for most people until events whirled out of control. From rolling out the red carpet for him to suddenly depicting him as a troublemaker, the government's sudden change of attitude towards Ramdev has been hard for the public to digest. State's predicament But considering the government's plight, the turn of events was inevitable; after social activist Hazare's fast unto death had already set off alarm bells in the government, the yoga guru's bid to go one better was too galling to countenance. Inspired by Hazare's fast undertaken to formulate the anti-corruption Lokpal Bill, Ramdev went a step further and put his charter of demands in front of the already

shaky government. The main planks of his agitation were the repatriation of black money held in foreign banks and awarding of the death sentence or life imprisonment to those found guilty of corruption. Ramdev, whose website claims that yoga can cure heart disease, epilepsy, asthma, obesity, arthritis and kidney problems, had the politicians scurrying for cover as preparations for his indefinite fast went along at the sprawling Ramlila Grounds. Ascetic style Just what is so special about Ramdev that other yoga gurus do not have? For one, the daily television shows on Aastha channel since 2005 has endeared him to many and may be termed the centrepiece of his popularity. Ramdev with his ascetic style entices the young and the old alike. Through yoga he has shown people the path to health and fitness. His critics dubbed him a performance artist' fearful of the way he gatecrashed into politics but his followers revere him. At one point during his agitation, he peppered his words with his trademark humour, "The hunger strike will help out my obese brothers and sisters to slim down and also bring back the country's wealth." The humour element is crucial to keeping his audiences riveted. Among his biggest supporters, 50 per cent are believed to be women. Ill-gotten wealth Housewives-turned yoga instructors have no idea of how Ramdev's fast could bring back ill-gotten wealth stashed away overseas. But thousands of them are blind followers to whom the agitation means nothing except "following the guru". The belief is such that they are least concerned whether any of this mumbo-jumbo will change their lives for the better. Ramdev has drawn sharp criticism in several quarters and many believe that the impression that black money could be retrieved is absolutely false. In the eyes of his followers, however, there is neither an iota of disbelief about their guru's plans nor any lingering doubts about the complicated task of tracking black money. In his constituency, Ramdev may be called a saint who is trying to be a politician, but he has worked towards that end. He has spent much of his time on making himself more widely known and has been seen more in television studios and less in his teaching centres. He does not claim to be a spiritual leader. Probably he realises that if he did so, it would open the door for a whole host of yoga experts waiting in the wings. Media savvy Ramdev understands all too well that he is living in an age driven by audio-visual images. Courtesy YouTube and camera phones, anything he does is broadcast in a matter of few minutes. And he has taken full advantage of this opportunity, freely giving his opinion on everything from Indo-US ties to homosexuality. He describes homosexuals as sick people, who need treatment. He opposed the high court verdict decriminalizing homosexuality and reportedly claimed that he could cure cancer by seven breathing exercises. Time and again, he has thrown the bait for others to react. And it's All India Congress Committee general secretary Digvijay Singh who has borne the brunt for reacting to every antic of the baba. Profiting from reactions Earlier, stating that Ramdev would have been in prison if the Congress party were scared of him, Singh went on to criticise the "fast" movement, terming it a 5-star agitation, because of the basic facilities provided at the venue in view of the scorching summer. Singh's latest reaction has been to call Ramdev a "thug". Certainly, the bid to belittle Ramdev as baba black sheep has not gone down well with the masses. The abusive language reserved for him on national television has only eroded ratings of the Congress party. And sympathy for Ramdev himself has only shot up. Also, the urgency with which the government procured documents pertaining to his properties has baffled many. It is alleged that during his meeting with the government's emissaries, Ramdev had been shown evidence of various illegalities

in the setting up of his yoga centres and ayurvedic pharmacies. But when he refused to shift his stead (fast) stand despite such pressures, about 30 firms with which he is associated faced overbearing scrutiny. The mood of his supporters remains unchanged though as they believe their guru can do no wrong. His critics are wondering how yoga, which till recently was just a way to remain fit and healthy, suddenly has different connotations. But whatever their line of thinking, Ramdev's power to sway street opinion has become evident and they are not underestimating that power any longer. The man's on a mission. Founded on millions in donations By his own admission, Ramdev's empire, reliant mainly on voluntary donations, has a turnover of about Rs11 billion (Dh88.89 million). Inaugurated in 2006, the sprawling campus of the Patanjali Yogpeeth in Uttarakhand state is the headquarters. Off National Highway-58, it is on the Haridwar-Roorkee route. This multi-million healing business centre comprises a 300bed multi-specialty hospital, an ayurveda college with hostel facilities, diagnostic labs, put-patient facilities, a research wing, library, food court, yoga classes and residential premises for visiting patients. The 100-acre Patanjali Food and Herbal Park is about 25 kms away from the headquarters. It houses a grand auditorium and well-furnished residential premises. Over 1 lakh yoga classes are held daily by over 10 lakh trained teachers across the country. The Patanjali Yog Samitis propagate yoga and Bharat Swabhiman Committees serve as vehicles of Ramdev's idea of living healthy by way of yoga. These have been established in districts and far-off villages, mostly in the northern states of the country. Ramdev owns a Scottish island donated' to him by a Glasgow-based devotee couple Sunita and Sam Poddar. The island has since been renamed Shanti Dwipan' or Peace Island. Around 900-acre island, originally called Little Cumbrae, was reportedly bought for 2 billion in 2009. The Poddars, known to be Ramdev's biggest promoters in the UK, have set up the Patanjali Yog Peeth (UK) Trust to spread his teachings. Profile Baba Ramdev, earlier named Ramkrishna Yadav, was born about 150 km away from Delhi in Ali Saiyadpur village in Mahendragarh district of Haryana in 1965. Considered a brilliant student, he studied till Class 8 and was later sent to Aarsh Gurukul Mahavidyalaya in Khanpur village. He learnt the value of pranayam (a yoga technique) when it cured him of the disabling effects of a paralytic stroke he suffered as a child. Thereafter, his faith in the curative nature of yoga became progressively stronger. Ranging from engineers and doctors, he now commands a massive entourage of professionals and activists. THE BABA POLITICS June 12, 2011 6:43:32 PM The vengeance with which the UPA has gone after Baba Ramdev shows its Emergency-like streak. However, it must understand that Ramdev and Anna Hazare are legitimate representatives of a society disgusted with corruption in high places. The authorities can suppress their voices, but the vacuum it will create will be filled by more violent and assertive forces, warns Utpal Kumar India is on the brink of a revolution. In fact, two revolutions. One unleashed by an austere man in a white cap not many would prefer to wear today. And, the other by a saffron-clad yoga guru, who doesnt believe sannyasis cant indulge in politics. One is a Gandhian who can sit cross-legged for hours, and is the darling of the metropolitan literati and chatterati. The other teaches indigenous ways to keep oneself healthy and has an unassailable hold over the masses of what is romantically called Middle India. The two complement each other. But thats not the way the political establishment and the mainstream English media see it. This disconnect was evident on a train from Bihar to Delhi a day after the midnight

drama was enacted at Ramlila Maidan. How can police beat up people, most of them women and children, who have come from faraway places to participate in a satyagraha? They were not at all violent, were they? Imagine their plight in an unknown city in the middle of the night, said a co-passenger, a Delhi University student whose father worked on a farmland in Bihar. This Government can allow a Hurriyat hardliner led by a pro-Maoist writer-cum-activist to script a separatist agenda in the Capital, but it cant endure a peaceful protest against growing corruption in the country, he added. Soon, others joined the debate. One was an Army jawan, another a salesman, and yet another a bank employee all truly representatives of what Mahatma Gandhi called the real India. The number increased, but the sentiment remained more or less the same: That the UPA has acted in a most undemocratic manner to quell the protest; that the Government wouldnt have dared to come down highhandedly had the protesters been from Delhis upper classes, as was the case with Anna Hazares agitation at Jantar Mantar not very long ago. In Delhi, however, one witnessed an altogether different political discourse, with focus not much on the issue of corruption and the Governments crackdown on innocent people, but on whether the Baba was at all the right person to hold any such agitation. The central-peripheral divide never looked sharper. The media, too, wasnt spared: While the English news channels either cut-off from the realities of sub-urban India or owing to their compulsions to cater to their elite and upper middle class audience for whom the Baba and his followers were just another funny characters toed the Government line, focussing on the alleged misdeeds of Ramdev and his colleagues. It seemed they blindly followed Congress leader Digvijay Singhs Babas-a-thug line. In the process, they forgot to ask a few tough questions: How could the Government suddenly stumble upon so much evidence against the yoga guru? Does it mean that it keeps such evidences as an armtwisting tool against its opponents for more opportune times? If so, doesnt it implicate the Government for being hypocritical on the issue of corruption? If the UPA was so sure about the Babas ill practices, why did it dispatch four ministers to receive him at the Delhi airport? And, if it was so uneasy about his saffron links, why did it entertain him for hours at a five-star hotel in Delhi? The Hindi news channels, in contrast, showcased a slightly more realistic picture of how the country was reacting to the Governments midnight crackdown at Ramlila Maidan. Perhaps, because their TRPs are determined by the masses in small towns and villages! ANNA VERSUS RAMDEV Hazare may have inspired a large section of the metropolitan population into expressing concern over the culture of corruption, but the burgeoning small towns and villages remained mostly untouched by the Anna phenomenon. That is where Ramdevs role comes into play, as any fight against corruption cant succeed without the support of Middle India. Ironically, those who welcomed Hazares call to clean the system are today circumspect about Ramdev. Not very long ago, it was a field day for celebrities from Aamir Khan to Kabir Bedi to show their solidarity with the Gandhian movement at Jantar Mantar. On Ramdev, however, the response has been plain disdainful. Salman Khan quipped, Why is he going on a hunger strike? Isnt he a yogi teaching yoga? As for Shah Rukh Khan, he discovered an agenda in the Babas agitation! The literatis love for Hazare is both understandable and enigmatic. Its

understandable because this class detests everything mass-oriented and accepts anything coming from the media. And, Hazare is largely a media construct. If a magazine report is to be believed, about 15 years ago, when Hazare went on a fast to protest against corruption in the then Maharashtra Government, a group of reporters from the vernacular press virtually became his publicity agents. Facts were twisted, and numbers inflated to provide legitimacy to his movement. A week into the fast, when these fellow reporters told Hazare that they couldnt sustain the movement any longer, the Gandhian wilfully relented to call it off on a Sunday. Here, again, there was a problem: On the proposed day, local elections were to be held in the State, an event that would obviously hog all the limelight. Hazare right away shifted his programme to Monday! Its enigmatic because theres more about Hazare that should disorient the educated, elite class. Going by the way he runs a village in Maharashtra, he cannot be called democratic by any means: He prefers the hands of a thief to be chopped off; he wants anyone found drinking to be tied to a pole and publicly flogged; he believes in rigid implementation of family planning, including forced vasectomies; and, he advocates the corrupt be hanged to death! Maybe Hazare is acceptable because he doesnt seem to threaten the status quoist upper middle class dreams. He just wants cosmetic changes at the top bring the Lok Pal Bill and alls well! It must be understood that while the upper middle class has the right to be disgusted with corruption, it is also a major beneficiary of the malaise. After all, despite it raising this issue, it is primarily this class that gets the maximum benefits from the bribes MNCs pay to politicians to create a hurdle-free economic milieu. Bribes, in a way, are needed for swift economic development in the country where governance isnt truly efficient. It is a way of buying efficiency, as a bureaucrat working in the Finance Ministry said. Todays Bihar is the best example of this trend. People in the State complain that with development, bureaucratic corruption has touched new heights. Pahle jo kaam pachas rupaye mein hota tha, ab 5,000 mein bhi nahin hota (Earlier a work could be done in Rs 50, but today even Rs 5,000 is not enough), said a schoolteacher in a northeastern district of Bihar. Yet, people seem content as the State has never witnessed such unprecedented flow of money. Everyone is getting richer here. Lifestyle has improved. So, people doesnt mind paying bribes to get their work done in the State, said a Patna-based businessman. Some, including a Patna Womens College professor, however, believe the Nitish Government should curb this malaise before it actually gets institutionalised. The upper middle class, therefore, isnt quite the victim of corruption as it pretends to be. Instead, it is the beneficiary of the system, however corrupt it may be. The real victims are the ones that have been left out or are on the fringes of the emerging economy. The Baba represents this section of Indian society. And, its for this reason that his movement needs to be welcomed, and not derided. Whats further bolstering Ramdevs case is that unlike other gurus, he is not foreign-imported, as one of his ardent followers says. He first strengthened his network in the country, and it was only in 2006 that he made his first trip abroad. No wonder, his worldview is rural-oriented, and he wants technical courses to be taught in the mother language. Its, therefore, hardly a surprise that his politicoeconomic ideas became an instant hit among rural Indians, left behind in the race for economic prosperity by the English-speaking elite. What helped him strike a chord was a daily TV show being aired on the Aastha channel since 2005. BLAME THE GOVERNMENT

Ramdev is as much the product of skewed globalisation as he is of the failure of our political leadership to deliver. After all, today we face the possibility of a political movement led by a yoga guru simply because our political leadership has failed us. Had Suresh Kalmadi been forced to resign when the Commonwealth shames first surfaced, the scandal would have died a natural death! Had A Raja been removed from his office the moment bad press appeared against him, the 2G scandal would have lost much of its sting! Nothing of the sort happened, hence the full-throated demand for a systemic change. Hence the emergence of a Baba and a Gandhian! Well into its second term, the UPA seems both rudderless and directionless. So is Manmohan Singh. This was a man who gave his Government six on 10 in a report card in 2005, one year after he became Prime Minister. People then thought he was being modest. Six years down the line, post several mind-boggling financial irregularities, Singh is neither modest, nor he pretends to be the one; he arbitrarily gives his Government seven out of 10. He puts the entire blame on coalition politics. For him, the DMK should be solely blamed for the 2G scam! And, Sharad Pawars NCP should be responsible for food inflation! Such excuses would have worked well during the UPA-I regime when the Congress had 145 seats, but not in 2009, when the party is just 66 seats short of an absolute majority of 272. No ruling party has been so secure in the Lok Sabha since 1991. But then the humility of 2005 has given way to the arrogance of 2011. And, it was this arrogance that was seen at Ramlila Maidan early this month. The vengeance with which the Government is going after the Baba shows its Emergency-like streak. The powers-that-be must understand that Ramdev and Hazare are two sides of the same coin. Inventing cases of corruption against those who are asking tough questions would make people cynical and force them to take recourse to more extreme measures. Look whats happening in West Asia! Who would have imagined six months ago that the Arab world would be in such a state of turmoil, as it is now? Hazare and Ramdev are for the good of the Government: They are its safety valve. NEW DELHI: A booklet brought out by the Congress to defuse opposition parties' aggressive campaign and highlight various anti-corruption steps of the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) has addressed questions raised by yoga guru Baba Ramdev on black money. The booklet 'The Congress view on present situation-1', released on Friday, has a photograph of party chief Sonia Gandhi on the cover. The party intends to distribute the booklet during its proposed rallies in state capitals this month. The booklet has contested several issues raised by Ramdev, including the figure of Rs.400 lakh crore he has quoted as the amount of black money stashed abroad. "Many of the demands raised by different persons are ill-informed and baseless. For example, to suggest that Rs.400 lakh crore is stashed abroad is a preposterous claim," said the booklet. The booklet did not name Ramdev but sought to demolish issues raised by him. Ramdev, who has been on a fast since June 4 when his rally at Delhi's Ramlila Ground was dispersed by police in a midnight crackdown, had on Thursday consumed lemonade and honey at the request of doctors. "To suggest that the Indian rupee can equal $50 betrays one's colossal ignorance. To demand that currency notes of denomination of Rs.1,000 and Rs.500 should be demonetized is not only impractical but fraught with grave consequences," the booklet said. The booklet also termed as absurd the figures relating to black money put forth by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). "Many such absurd claims have been made. For

example, the BJP has claimed that black money was between Rs.1,125,0002,250,000 crore ($250-500 billion). Suddenly the amount jumps from about Rs.22 lakh crore to Rs.400 lakh crore," the booklet said. Outlining the steps taken by the government to curb corruption and black money, the booklet said that a "strong and sound" Lokpal bill would be introduced in the monsoon session of parliament. "It (the government) has entrusted probe into grave allegations of corruption that may involve people in high places to the CBI (Central Bureau of Investigation). It has welcomed the Supreme Court's oversight of investigations. The government has ratified the UN Convention Against Corruption. It has introduced a bill to punish bribery of foreign public officials," the booklet said. On the issue of black money, it said that the Prevention of Money Laundering Act was passed during the previous UPA government's tenure and had provisions for confiscation of property. It said that UPA-II had so far unearthed Rs.18,750 crore in income tax searches, Rs.12,000 crore in income tax surveys, Rs.33,784 crore in mispricing of goods and services, and Rs.22,697 crore of taxes had been collected due to special attention on cross-border transactions and business deals. "Three national-level institutions have been tasked to estimate the extent of black money...Action has been taken against high profile tax evaders such as Pune-based stud farm owner Hasan Ali Khan, former Jharkhand chief minister Madhu Koda and former Satyam chief B. Ramalinga Raju." The booklet said that the government entered into double taxation avoidance agreements (DTAA) with 27 countries (including Switzerland) and tax information exchange agreements with 10 countries. An agreement had been reached with Mauritius to review the DTAA. Whether fighting the double digit inflation or making a controversial move to throw Baba Ramdev out of Delhi in the middle of the night, it is a small group of people who takes such significant decisions. They may not always show it but they wield enormous clout, set the agenda for the government, implement secretly drawn up plans and take upon themselves the responsibility of accomplishing very unpleasant tasks. They are the government's doers, its think-tank and, more often than not, its fire-fighters. The United Progressive Alliance is going through a difficult phase in its second term with the Opposition National Democratic Alliance trying to embarrass the government at every step, at different forums at deliberations of the JPC probing the 2G scam or at the hurriedly organized Rajghat protest against the assault on Ramdev's supporters. Since October, scandals have engulfed the government, spiraling prices have added fuel to the fire and the administration in Lutyen's Delhi has fumbled quite often. Endgame begins for Manmohan? June 12, 2011 6:43:54 PM Swapan Dasgupta Every time a political crisis hits an otherwise stable Government, Lutyens Delhi resonates with talk of an imminent Cabinet reshuffle. This summer a time when the great and the good are either on holiday or engaging in meaningful study tours of countries where summers are more agreeable an almighty political crisis has hit the UPA Government. However, instead of the bush telegraph choking with speculative tittle-tattle over whos in and whos out, the creative energies of the Congress are being otherwise misspent. The redoubtable Hindu has reported a proposed publicity blitz by the Congress to deconstruct the Yoga-guru Baba Ramdevs anti-corruption campaign by focussing on the Sangh Parivars nefarious strategy, while simultaneously highlighting the

steps the UPA Government had taken and would be taking to tackle the twin problems of black money and corruption. If nothing, this mandate is reassuringly familiar. Those with memory on their side will recall the anti-fascist movement launched by the Congress and its slavish Communist ally in 1974-75 against Jayaprakash Narayan. So, what explains the insignificant chatter in Delhis political beltway about an imminent Cabinet reshuffle? Part of the reason could be attributed to the fact that the proprietors of the Congress are away on holiday. For all the secrecy surrounding their every step and their studied silence on issues of contemporary concern, they could well have been on holiday for months without anyone being the wiser. Most Congress aspirants also know by now that lobbying Race Course Road is a waste of time. In the Congress-led UPA, the Prime Minister presides over the Cabinet; he doesnt appoint it. The relative tranquility on the Cabinet reshuffle front doesnt imply that politics has finally taken a much-needed breather. On the contrary, the Congress has been on political over-drive since Anna Hazare was anointed the sole spokesman of civil society by a panic-stricken Government and a pumped up media. But the talk in the gatherings of the Bent and the Beautiful isnt over the likelihood of Anand Sharma fulfilling his lifes ambition to be Foreign Minister or the risks in Jairam Ramesh reverting to vendetta environmentalism. Cabinet reshuffle was the day before yesterdays story; todays hot speculation is centred on Kaun banega Pradhan Mantri? Is Manmohan Singh batting the final overs of his long innings at the crease? When will the non-playing captain signal to him to either depart retired hurt or get himself out? Earlier the suggestion was that the good doctor would be told to vacate Race Course Road and move into Rashtrapati Bhavan to coincide with Pratibha Patils shift into a less grand Lutyens house. Of late, however, there are suggestions of a timetable change. The proverbial well-informed sources speak of the next two months being critical and bureaucrats with sensitive antennae refer to a longdistance race in its final lap. It is sometimes difficult to make complete sense of the cross-currents in the Congress, but it is relevant to observe the trends. First, in the aftermath of the Anna-Baba incidents, the criticism of the Government by people holding posts in the party is becoming shriller and more frequent. Initially, it was Digvijay Singh who played the Lone Ranger and Mani Shankar Aiyar the Mad Hatter. But of late even the likes of Anil Shastri are inclined to take pot shots at the Government. And Minister of State V Narainswamys admission that in all matters the party prevails over the Government was read by many as marking the beginning of the endgame for the Prime Minister. Second, to talk about the competitors beginning their dash in the last rounds is misplaced. What we are witnessing instead is the process of elimination. For the first time since the Congress returned to power in 2004, an attack was launched on Pranab Mukherjee by no less a person than a general secretary. This was accompanied by a wave of concern in relevant circles over allegations of favouritism and hanky-panky in the Finance Ministry. Nor was Pranab babu singled out for deflation. P Chidambarams balloon was said to have been pricked when he was sharply attacked in the presence of the ubiquitous Madam for the Ramlila Maidan mess. To the Congress durbar what mattered was that Madam did not rise to the Home Ministers defence. But why is this elimination round necessary if the Congress is aware of who the chosen successor

to Singh is? The answer is not necessarily straight. Rahul Baba is the designated heir to the throne but, unfortunately, inspires little confidence in his leadership abilities. Even Congress loyalists feel that his approach is too casual, patchy and lacking in gravitas. There is also concern that an impressionable (if not gullible) Rahul is now under the direct control of what is increasingly being called a Thakur cabal. This cabal, said to be masterminded by Digvijay Singh, is increasingly calling the shots, dictating policy and exacerbating the gulf between the Government and the party. To many, the emasculation of the Prime Ministers leadership is a diabolical response to the inability of the heir apparent to take off. By first creating a demand for a leadership change, then undermining (or scaring off) all other non-family contenders and, finally, setting up a clamour for Rahul that others cant dare oppose, the Thakur lobby may well be preparing the ground for a political coup that puts it in control of India.

COLUMN: The real reason why Sushma Swaraj was dancing

Submitted by Prashant Duggal on Wed, 06/08/2011 - 20:56 Like many citizens of this country, I was shocked to wake up on Sunday morning and find that the Government had lathi-charged what I thought was a rather harmless satyagrah going on in Ramlila grounds. Like most of my fellow-citizens, I was quick to condemn the violation of our constitutional right to peaceful agitation -- the cornerstone of any democracy. And again, like most you, I wanted answers -who was responsible, what prompted them to take such a drastic action, are we living under a Jerkyll & Hyde state that may come out of its sheep's clothing without so much as a notice. The answers started coming yesterday. First it was Congress General Secretary Digvijay Singh who declared in UP that the action was entirely a Delhi Police operation -- at one stroke, putting our proud Home Minister P Chidambaram in the dock. It was followed by a concerted attempt by the BJP to 'get Chidambaram' -possibly an attempt to force him to spill the beans on who actually pulled the trigger on peaceful demonstrators. Chidamabaram has a reputation for being very proud of his record as the country's chief guardian.

Chidambaram's answer came today -- and it is not a pretty sight that the country's home minister has painted -- either of the Congress Party and the government or of Baba Ramdev. The only winner, ironically, from all this may be the BJP. The most significant part of Chidambaram's defence of himself and his action is reproduced below. In it, Chidambaram is trying to prove that the agitation was not just a Baba Ramdev affair, but a joint Ramdev-RSS event. "Government had taken note of the resolution passed by the Akhil Bharatiya Pratinidhi Sabha (of the RSS) on March 10-13, 2011 at Puttur, Karnataka; the announcement by the RSS of the formation of an Anti-Corruption Front with Shri Baba Ramdev as its patron and Shri K.N. Govindacharya as its convenor; the decision on 12.5.2011 of the ABVP to float an organisation named Youth Against Corruption and to coordinate with Shri Baba Ramdev; and the circular issued on 20.5.2011 by Shri Suresh Joshi of the RSS to all swayamsevaks to render all possible cooperation to Shri Baba Ramdevs campaign. Similar instructions were issued on 28.5.2011 by Shri Ashok Singhal of the VHP to all VHP office bearers." If true (as it seems), the statement makes two things very clear: 1) Baba's agitation was a co-planned by Baba and the RSS and 2) The government knew very well that it was a joint effort But that is not all that Chidambaram's statement reveals (which explains why Chidambaram did not come out with this statement till it looked like he would end up holding the baby.) The statement also begs two questions -- The government, knowing fully well that it was a joint venture between the Baba and the RSS engaged Baba in talks and even let him go on with the fast. Why would it do that? Why would the government try to cut a deal with someone that they knew was already in an agreement with the RSS? The answer, perhaps lies in the cynical politics played by the Congress. Having been long associated with a non-ideological party (where power is primarily pursued as an end in itself,) the Congress leaders seemed to have made the mistake that Ramdev too was like them. In other words, they under-estimated the 'Hindu' convictions of the Yoga guru -- a known expounder of such traditional values. They failed to realize that the alliance between the Baba and the RSS was one that was based on 'shared values', as the Americans put it. So, while they could scare the Baba enough to make him consent to go along with their plan (of abandoning the fast after three days,) once out of their grip, Baba reverted to his old priorities and beliefs. By the end of the first day of the fast, the Baba thought he had a good shot to actually carry out what he set out to do -launch a massive nationwide agitation that would threaten the government, with RSS support. The Congress, needless to say, felt cheated and the feeling of betrayal is still reflected in their characterization of Baba as a cheat, fraud, thug etc.. They failed to understand the importance of ideology and thought they could simply co-opt the Baba with allurements. Baba had, notable, alluded to both of these aspects -- once, when he said that an attempt was made by the government to "buy him off," and at another occasion when he asked about his agreement with the government. "If I had not handled things with presence of mind on the evening of the 3rd [when the government was talking to him,] thousands of my followers would have been slaughtered," he had said, when asked why he had given a written assurance to the government. In other words, Baba was scared and simply wanted to shake the government off. The Congress government, which felt majorly let down after Baba failed to make the truce announcement on Saturday, decided to teach Baba a lesson on what happens when you promise them something and then don't deliver. While they may indeed have taught Baba a lesson, they also manage to expose their poor understanding of and respect for democracy -- trampling over the rights that citizens hold dear and had come to expect as a matter of course.

The sorry episode also exposed Baba. It exposed Baba as someone who got scared too easily, and was willing to give a half-hearted assurance when under pressure. It exposed him as someone who did not trust the democratic credentials of the government, when he refused to go with the police when they came to get him. He perhaps felt that he might be tortured for having gone back on his word. Baba also made another mistake -- he did not own up to his RSS link, especially in this agitation. It seems a silly mistake. After all, what did Baba have to lose by declaring his alliance with RSS with whom he shares most of his nation-making vision and priorities? There is only one explanation for this -- BJP. RSS, as the ideological foundation of the BJP, did not want to be seen as propping up another political organization that may one day compete with BJP for the same votes and political mind-share. This also points to interesting possibilities -- first being that the RSS may have had serious plans of throwing its weight behind the Baba and his upcoming political party as a more worthwhile bet for true 'reconstruction' of the Nation along Hindu principles -- its long-term aim. And that is why BJP may be the biggest gainer from all this. Not only has one of its possible political challengers lost some credibility, but the visuals of a Congress government using brute force on women and children in the dead of the night is likely to pay it rich electoral dividends in UP and beyond. As for how Baba will be come out of all this and whether BJP will be more accommodative of the RSS' vision of National reconstruction, only time will tell.

Indias spiritual babas and politics

Politics has always been fertile ground for Indias spiritual babas, and they have made the most of it. Baba Ramdev is only the latest in a long line DHIRENDRA BRAHMACHARI For the ordinary Indian who was fortunate enough to own a black-and-white television set back in the late 70s, Dhirendra Choudhary aka Swami Dhirendra Brahmachari was the man who peddled yoga as the remedy for many an ill through a programme on Doordarshan (DD). Most impressive, perhaps, was his proximity to late Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, to whom he was reportedly introduced by her father, Jawaharlal Nehru. Addressed as Swamiji in Ms Gandhis household, Dhirendra Brahmachari rose to political prominence during the Emergency (1975 to 1977) imposed by Ms Gandhis government. He was frequently referred to as Indias Rasputin. He owned the sprawling Vishwayatan Yogashram in the heart of Delhi, besides campuses in Jammu, Katra and Mantalai. Oddly, for a so-called spiritual guru, he was also part-owner of an arms manufacturing factory in Jammu. Ironically, for a man who was also often called the flying swami, he died in an air crash in 1994. CHANDRASWAMI If Indira Gandhi had her politico-spiritual mentor in Dhirendra Brahmachari, two other Indian prime ministers, P.V.Narasimha Rao and Chandrashekhar drew their spiritual sustenance from yet another godman, Nemi Chand Jain aka Chandraswami. The heavy-set man with salt-and-pepper hair and beard, a prominent crimson tilak adorning his large forehead, once enjoyed formidable clout. With a plush ashram in south Delhi, he counted among his followers the likes of Lalu Prasad Yadav, former UP governor Romesh Bhandari, the Sultan of Brunei and, some say, even the late Elizabeth Taylor. But it was perhaps his involvement in the infamous Lakhubhai Pathak case in which the London-based businessman accused him and Narasimha Rao of cheating him of $100,000 that brought notoriety, and details of his many other dealings, such as the St. Kitts forgery case and at least nine FERA violation cases. When IT authorities conducted a raid at his Delhi ashram, they found original drafts of payments totalling $11 million to arms dealer Adnan Khashoggi. RAVI SHANKAR With a spiritual empire spread over 151 countries, literally the whole world, no one has done it better than Ravi Shankar, Sri Sri to his followers. The B.Sc graduate from

St. Josephs, Bengaluru, flies around the world at the invitation of foreign governments and the United Nations and hobnobs with prime ministers, presidents and other sorts of heads of states, elected or self-appointed. With Sudarshana Kriya, he attempts to breathe peace into strife-torn regions from Sri Lanka to Iraq to Palestine to Kosovo. Of course, if you want to learn the technique, you have to sign a non-disclosure agreement with the non-profit guru who has even been nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize. Who am I? leads to spirituality, and what is this? leads to Science, the guru says. But then, as the man says, Truth is spherical rather than linear, so it has to be contradictory. His website does not reveal any details of financials of his Art of Living Foundation, but then, neither does he overtly take on the powers-that-be. He spiritualises them. BABA RAMDEV Until last week, Ramdev was one of Indias most famous Yoga gurus, thanks to his daily lessons on Aastha TV, which are reportedly watched by some 30-40 million people nation-wide. The New York Times called him an Indian who built a Yoga empire, a product and symbol of the New India, a yogic fusion of Richard Simmons, Dr Oz and Oprah Winfrey, irrepressible and bursting with Vedic wisdom. By Ramdevs own admission, the man who claims to have renounced all worldly pleasures runs four trusts whose assets run into Rs 1,100 crore, owns a 2 million island in Scotland, and flies around in a private jet. To many that makes him look more like Vijay Mallya, than the Yoga guru and other-worldly sage that he claims to be. And that apparently is just his four trusts and their affiliated companies. Many allege that he has holdings in many shadow companies. For the government, all that was fine. Even Ramdevs ambition to launch a political party. Until he began to use the UPAs weakest spot corruption and black money as his launch pad.

What a muddle in the huddle

The power structure at the top, however, remains unaffected. It retains the curious arrangement which had been worked out between UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, who runs the government but allows the party and its leader a free hand in all political issues. Occasionally, there are instances of miscommunication as is bound to happen in such a set-up. The party has to decide the agenda and may find it frustrating to deal with a government not really in sync with the party. Rahul Gandhi has been gradually accommodated in this hierarchy as the third power centre. He has not accepted offers to join the government. It may have gone down as an astute political gesture one that suggests humility and a desire to learn the ropes before accepting a high office. But it is surprising that Rahul does not exert much of an influence on the government's functioning. There are times when his primary interest in UP can prompt the formulation of a particular Bundelkhand policy but, on the whole, Team Rahul Gandhi is not really calling the shots in the Manmohan Singh administration. So, who really runs the show other than the obvious trio of Sonia Gandhi, Manmohan Singh and the times when Rahul Gandhi evinces real interest in an issue? These three points in the UPA power triangle have been excluded from the accompanying list of the 20 most powerful people who keep the UPA going, ensuring that the government does not distance itself from the party and that it stays in touch with the genuine grievances of the people. These are the men who also blunder on a few occasions as they did recently in their dealings with Baba Ramdev.

This list includes a set of people who have been multi-tasking at many levels. Pranab Mukherjee, P Chidambaram, A K Antony and Kapil Sibal are not just ministers whose job profile is delineated by assigned portfolios. They swing into action whenever there is a crisis. They draw from their vast experience to suggest the possible way out. Some like Antony may not display the apparent brilliance of a few of his colleagues but he brings to the discussion a shadowy presence of Sonia Gandhi. He is the 10 Janpath factor in the government's decision-making process. Sonia participates in person when the elite core group meets and shares her inputs which have to be translated by the ministers into policy. Unless a situation threatens to go out of hand as it did during the Ramdev fiasco, the UPA chairperson seldom interferes with the government's decisions. Sibal's stocks have risen because the Prime Minister is convinced of his abilities. Anand Sharma retains his influence because economic diplomacy is now of immense significance to India. Ghulam Nabi Azad is of great use to the party because of his familiarity with southern politics. On the other hand, there are a few who have completely fallen off the map. Law minister Veerappa Moily enjoyed the confidence of the top leadership till last year. Now even his vital portfolio is unable to guarantee him an invitation to crucial meetings. The last Cabinet reshuffle was not really kind to Kamal Nath, and SM Krishna's has been a downhill journey from the beginning. With DMK cut down to size both by the 2G scandal and the recent electoral debacle, the UPA II doesn't have any ally trouble at the moment. Even the obstinate Mamata Banerjee has been able to fulfill her ambition of heading the West Bengal government and is not expected to bother people in New Delhi. That doesn't mean there has been a similar dilution of Sharad Pawar's position. The Maratha strongman continues to juggle between cricket and agriculture. In Cabinet meetings, the Prime Minister becomes attentive whenever Pawar holds forth on a subject. Some in the UPA leadership insist on the growing prominence of the affable Pawan Bansal or the increasing relevance of Salman Khursheed but neither has managed to make it to this list. The list includes the enigmatic Ahmed Patel, the rampaging Digvijay Singh and the soft-spoken close aide of Sonia Gandhi, Janardan Dwivedi. The top bureaucrats headed by the Cabinet Secretary and the others like the Principal Secretary in the PMO or the Home Secretary are considered indispensable in the power set-up. The Director of Intelligence Bureau had to be included not just for the obvious security reasons but also because in politically distressing times, the government needs accurate feedback. The CBI Director and the chief of Enforcement Directorate had to be brought in because their high-profile investigations have a direct bearing on this government's future. There were suggestions that foreign secretary Nirupama Rao, has overshadowed her minister and ought to in the UPA's Team 20 but her name was omitted because others who are shouldering even more important responsibilities had to be included. Like a profligate, Baba Ramdev blew it away. Last Sunday, he was handed a winning situation on a platter: the government ordered a police raid on the Ramlila grounds to evict him and hundreds of followers. The result was unthinkable: Baba won the support of not just his believers but also his detractors. The public outcry had UPA running for cover. Eight days later, it is Ramdev who wishes he could hide. Right now, he is recovering in Dehradun's Himalayan Institute of Medical Sciences. Doctors say he is stable, though speaking with difficulty. No longer in the intensive care unit, he has been

shifted to a VIP room to recuperate. But Ramdev's campaign continues to be in deep trouble. Sages say what comes easy goes faster. The wave of support came too easy for Ramdev. He did little to earn it. The public sentiment was more anti-government than pro-Ramdev. Perhaps this is why he couldn't handle it. The campaign suddenly became bigger than Ramdev or his aides had conceived. Earlier last week, many expected him to put final touches to a victory. Instead they found him floundering: unable to handle the media or garner support on his home turf. A combination of both factors derailed Ramdev's plans. The jury is out on his financial probity, his trusts and his companies. But the very fact that such questions were raised seemed to disqualify him as a leader of a campaign against corruption. ET on Sunday analyses how Ramdev unravelled his own game with blow by blow accounts from his ashram Patanjali Yogpeeth, Haridwar. Naive Comments to the Media It began to go downhill on Wednesday. During one of his customary public appearances at the yogyashala, an open-air auditorium, Ramdev claimed he would launch an 11,000-strong force for self-defence. It was unclear if he meant an 'armed' force. But Ramdev did claim constitutional backing for the right to self-defence: "We all have this right. Don't people across the country learn judo and karate? This is perfectly legal. We will raise a force of young people like that." He added: "We will not assault any one. But neither will we be assaulted." And then came a statement which exemplified his naivete: "I know my media friends won't twist my words. I have full confidence in them." Whether twisted or not, the channels reported those words widely. Pushed to be Defensive By Thursday, events turned farcical. Everyone had been told that Baba and Acharya Balkrishna would address the media, till then both had been relatively inaccessible. At about 6.15 pm, they appeared together. In contrast to Ramdev, who is more comfortable talking to large supporters, Balkrishna seemed more media savvy. Dressed in white (the garb of a brahmachari), he constantly viewed news channels to be updated on developments at the Centre. Balkrishna wanted to be ready with the next move even while talking on the mobile phone. But the acknowledged financial brain of Ramdev Inc was not prepared for some media questions, particularly about how many passports he held. A journalist had heard that the Acharya's passport was fake. "After the press conference I will give you photocopies of my passport. Everything is above board," he pleaded, before leaving the presser to run to the comforts of his room, chased by a horde of cameramen. The ignominy of being forced to distribute dozens of photocopies of his passport to prove his bonafides must have been unbearable for a man who, just a week earlier, was supping with cabinet ministers at posh Delhi hotels. It also highlighted the Achilles' heel in Ramdev's strategy: he had no tactical tools to counter media's probing questions. Any PR hack, fresh out of school, could have told the acharya that once he reached

the point where he had to explain and justify himself repeatedly, he had pretty much lost the battle for credibility. The problem was that Ramdev needed the media to be a friend. Having been chased out of Delhi, it was the chief conduit for spreading his message to his followers. Of the few thousand people who had turned up at Delhi's Ramlila ground, only 20-25% followed him to the ashram. As days passed, the numbers dwindled, as people broke their fast and headed home. But the media wasn't playing ball. It was asking questions not part of the script - questions about Baba's business empire. Balance Sheet Details Left Out The Acharya was forced to give details of the trusts in which a substantial chunk of Baba Inc's assets were held (see table). The details were interesting, but what about the companies? This was where the Acharya clammed up: "We felt obliged to give you details about the trusts because this information is available nowhere else. But the details of the companies are with the registrar of companies, and any other details are available through the RTI Act. You can get it from there," he said. He refused to talk about how many company directorships he holds. Or how many companies comprise the Ramdev group. Irrespective of whether the records are clean, holding back details roused suspicion among all. Predictably, the media, when reporting the press conference, focused on the Acharya's refusal to talk about his companies, not his attempts to be transparent about the trusts. Those around the Acharya told ET on Sunday that he admits to the existence of only two companies, Patanjali Ayurved , which manufactures herbal remedies, and Divya Pharmacy. But reports claim the Acharya manages or owns at least 34 companies, including Vedic Broadcasting , which manages Aastha, the religious channel. Feelers From RSS The Acharya was asked a seemingly irrelevant question: "What is your stand on the Babri Masjid demolition?" Neither Ramdev nor his acolytes had ever taken a position on the demolition, but questions have persisted about his links with the far right. Balkrishna tried to dodge the Babri question: "I was not witness to it." Pressed, he added: "We don't agree with violence." But he refused to take a firm position on the event. That and visitors from the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh sent out a different signal. Sadhvi Ritambhara had turned up at the Ramlila ground and Ashok Singhal made an appearance at Patanjali. Both were at the forefront of the Babri Masjid destruction. BJP leader Sushma Swaraj too visited Ramdev, but she claimed to do so as leader of the opposition. Stranger on Home Ground The questions on Ramdev's integrity may have been countered if Baba's supporters based in Haridwar had thrown their collective weight behind him. Extensive arrangements had been made for them: counters to register letters of support, a bigger pandal for people to sit more comfortably, drinking water facilities and LCD screens for better viewing of the stage. The problem: not enough people came. Ramdev's support base extends from Houston to a Scottish island Little Cumbrae, but closer home, he draws a blank. On Tuesday night, 60% people present (of about 300) were supporters. By Friday, 60% of the crowd comprised tourists to Haridwar and Rishikesh who had stopped

over at the ashram for a darshan. They totalled about 500. The question: where were the residents of villages around the ashram? Most continued with their daily routine. This attitude may be attributed to Ramdev's seeming indifference to their troubles. For instance, Shantersham, a village oneand-a-half km behind the ashram, shows all signs of poverty: mud houses and small broken lanes. The villagers grow crops like wheat, bajra, sugarcane and mustard and sell some of the produce in the Roorkee mandi, and Ikbalbur cane market. Shantersham has one primary school and a small health centre with just one nurse. Worse, the villagers have to pay for the treatment they receive at the Yogpeeth. Says an official at the nearby Anandmahima ashram in Konkhol: "What has happened to all the crops that were grown in that area currently owned by the Ashram or the people who worked there? How can Ramdev encourage people to strike work if he is committed to the country? It's a blind following." Devanghu, a picture postcard seller on the ghats of Har Ki Pauri says: "Ramdev cannot even garner support in Haridwar. He was unable to get it during the Kumbh too. His work and philosophy raises several suspicions." As Ramdev lies in a hospital bed, an isolated protagonist in an unexpected denouement, perhaps this is what he should introspect. His clique is not responsible for his public stature. It is the faith of his followers. The only way to strengthen his position is to engage with the people. Maybe then they will listen to him. Team Baba Acharya Balkrishna: The managerial and financial brains behind the organisation. Reported to hold substantial stakes in as many as 34 companies which comprise the Ramdev group. Swami Muktanand: A key business brain and close aide. Is a shareholder and board member of Patanjali Ayurved, and Vedic Broadcasting, along with Acharya. Shastriji: Sister's husband and crisis manager. Spends most of his time at an ashram in Rajasthan. Went to Delhi for the fast at his supporters' behest. Two years ago, mediated in a dispute between local villagers and Ramdev's staff, many villagers were beaten up by ashram guards. Sampurnanand: Has some differences with Baba's ways but holds his cool. Has become a close friend of the media. He and Baba studied together at ashrams in Haryana. Now runs a gurukul there. Not officially involved in any trusts or business. Sudhir: Ramdev's secretary and the core team's 'civilian' component. In a buttonopened half sleeved white shirt, looks like a bouncer. Speaks in a heavy Haryanvi accent. Follows Baba like a shadow who is called upon for everything, to handle media query to a glass of water. Ajay Arya: Another 'civilian' aide who was injured in the Ramlila grounds last Sunday. Also holds shares in, and is on the board of Vedic Broadcasting. Is on the board of Patanjali. Heard in Haridwar "I can't comment. I wasn't there to witness it." - Acharya Balkrishna, on being asked for his views on the Babri Masjid demolition. "There is a difference between the emotion you perceive for a person and the way you treat them. A man may feel the same emotion [love] for his wife and his daughter, but he would treat them differently. Similarly, the emotion felt by Baba for all the trust members is the same: one of love. But he treats certain types of members differently." - Siddharth, (an aide to Baba) on why higher paying members get better facilities and conveniences than others "Even Sachin Tendulkar is anti-national and takes money to compromise his

country. This is evident from the fact that he is a campaigner for egg-eating, having appeared in ads that proclaim 'ande hi ande, Sunday ho ya Monday' - One of the speakers at Ramdev's sabhas in Patanjali, addressing Baba's followers about the evils of eating non-vegetarian food. From Tehelka dot com It was a five-star dharna at Ramlila Ground, with the mobilisation suspiciously similar to what they did for the Babri Masjid campaign The police crackdown on people assembled to participate in the anti-corruption fast by Baba Ramdev on the night of June 4-5, 2011, needs to be condemned no end. As police methods go, in their effort to evacuate the Ramlila ground, they fired teargas shells and lathicharged people leading to injuries to many, including women and children. The police action was the culmination of the failure of negotiations between the government and Ramdev. Ramdev is continuing his fast in his Patanjali Yoga Ashram in Haridwar. A brief rundown of the background and a few details of the event are in order here. After Anna Hazare started his fast for the Lokpal Bill at Jantar Mantar, Ramdev joined it. The fast by Anna Hazare got a lot of support from the middle-class. All over, one could see the hand of well-organised machinery trying to crystallise the spontaneous upsurge of people in support of the anti-corruption movement led by Hazare. The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) backed the support and made the upsurge more organised. During this fast, attention was focused on Anna Hazare who was even hyped as a second Gandhi. Ramdev had his differences with Hazare, as he had his own scheme of things shaping up, built around his following from his very successful business of teaching yoga. This yoga is being lapped up in the country with new anxieties and new tensions to overcome in the globalised era. Ramdev claims to have a massive following and after Hazares fast he declared that he too would go on fast with a focus on the illicit money stashed in foreign countries. He began mobilising people and his advisers included the RSS-trained Govindacharya. The protest hunger strike of Ramdev was well organised; something resembling five-star arrangements were put in place with massive expenditure. The support base of Ramdev is the middle-class, including the trading community and organisations like the Khaps who came in large number. Those who have seen the dharnas and protests of the deprived sections of society might have been gripped with shock that such massive funds can be mobilised with such a huge number of people participating in a protest, which, though genuine, still looks at the issue of black money in only a superficial way. One concedes that corruption is one of the major scourges of our country, but one also knows that corruption is a superficial manifestation of the deeper rot of the system as a whole. The attempts to weed out corruption without addressing the gross inadequacies of the system and massive injustices prevailing in society cannot work, as repeatedly demonstrated during the agitations led by Jayaprakash Narayan and later VP Singh. Still, the section of the population that participates in these protests is very different from the large mass of the suffering in the country. Generally, this section is made up of those who form the core of the Bharatiya Janata Partys Shining India. In addition, there is another following of Ramdev those whose source of wealth may have dubious origins. Coming to Ramdev himself, he is quite a phenomenon, a successful yoga teacher-turned-businessman and now on the threshold of political ambition, which he has been hiding under a saffron garb and a religious image. To pick up the sequence of events, once Ramdev was close to beginning his fast, the government got panicky for reasons of electoral politics. The RSS combine has a support base like that of Ramdev. Both were negotiating about starting a new political party and how it would entail manoeuvres that can shift substantial votes away from the RSS and the BJP but keep the politics focused on the theme of a Hindu nation. The government was keen on preventing this fast and in that direction they kneeled in front of Ramdev, by calling on him at the airport. The negotiations began and in the second round of negotiations an agreement was reached that the government would undertake measures to ensure that illicit money is brought back from outside India and that the noose is tightened around those who have stashed such wealth. Ramdevs

associate signed the agreement and Ramdev declared that 99% of his demands have been met. This was seen as a clear indication that there was no need for him to sit on a hunger strike. Still, once he returned to the Ramlila ground, Ramdev persisted on a fast. Now his associate claims that they deliberately gave a letter, as they feared they would be arrested. At this point, the government felt betrayed. Normally, such agitations are undertaken so that ones demands are fulfilled and 99% is the highest success rate possible. So what was the intention in continuing the agitation? It appears that the fast was a pretext to ensure that the mobilisation done for political goals should be consolidated and not be allowed to wither away. The anticorruption label was apparently a faade and the goal was to strengthen the politics for a Hindu nation, something which had led to divisive tendencies in the country in the past. Interesting things followed. Manmohan Singh says the crackdown was inevitable; the details are not given so one doesnt know what the government had in mind. It is at this time that the state authorities decided to take Ramdev away and get the Ramlila ground cleared. When the police approached to take Ramdev away, he jumped from the stage in the midst of women supporters and disappeared. A few hours later, he was spotted wearing the clothes of a woman and hiding his beard with a dupatta. He was taken away. So far the experience of agitations is that the leader takes the first blow. The leader is there to protect the followers from the wrath of police action. But this is politics of a different hue. Here, cowardice is paraded as bravery and honesty is replaced by tricks. After giving a letter to the government, Ramdev backed out from that and when the police wanted to take him away, he hid behind women and fled wearing womens clothes, leaving his followers to face the consequences of his mobilisation. Ramdev justifies giving the letter to withdraw the fast and opting for a womans disguise to escape, saying that these tactics were followed by Shivaji. This argument lacks all understanding of a democratic society. Shivaji was a king, battling with other kings for power. In a democracy, agitations and discussions are undertaken to lead the path to apply pressure on a government. So Ramdev is parading cowardice under the garb of a king. Shivajis tactics have been greatly admired by various votaries of the Hindu nation. Shivaji has also been used for the divisive agenda of the junior partner of the BJP, the Shiv Sena. The followers of Savarkar, the progenitor of the ideology of a Hindu nation, had a great task in defending his act of repeatedly apologising to the British Viceroy, when he was imprisoned in the Andaman jail. His followers said it was a clever move to secure release from a British jail so that he could work for the cause of national freedom. One recalls that after his release from the Andamans, Savakar never was part of any anti-British movement, and was practically helping the British authorities in many ways, including their war against the Axis powers. So much for his cleverness. One of the reasons for recalling Shivaji to defend their cowardice may also be that the ideologues and followers of a Hindu nation are motivated by the feudal values and the ideals of kingdoms when there was a primacy of the upper castes and the landlords. In the guise of the rule of noble kings, there is a subtle attempt to eulogise the values associated with those kingdoms the values of birth-based hierarchy of caste and gender. No wonder Ramdev and his associates are quoting Shivaji for multiple reasons: they want to go back to the times of caste and gender hierarchy in new language. No wonder the murderous Khaps are with Ramdevs movement. The political aspects of the phenomenon are curiouser. The RSS combine has underwritten the whole movement. It seems after two defeats in general elections, this outfit is on the lookout for another issue, which can give them electoral rewards the way communal violence gives or the way the Babri Masjid demolition gave them. The current mobilisation is for a Hindu nation, by and large, which is opposed to the rights of the Adivasis, Dalits and other marginalised sections of society. This was the pattern of the mobilisation for the Babri Masjid demolition. Things are not so unclear. All the actors of demolition politics are around: Govindacharya, Sadhvi Ritambhara and Uma Bharti. The other actors of the demolition like LK Advani and Murli Manohar Joshi have joined in post-dispersal protests. Ramdev has been backed majorly by RSS functionaries who have so far kept quiet after the atrocities against marginalised sections, against the violence targeted at farmers or against minorities. Now the Babri demolition gang is leading the procession to Rashtrapati Bhawan and having a celebratory dharna, dancing and singing, to call for a joint session of parliament.

While the measures against the corrupt must be supported to the hilt, one has to distinguish between the genuine and deeper efforts to root out this phenomenon from the sensational efforts and still bigger sensational presentation of the same by a large section of the media, especially the glorification of Ramdev and the efforts aimed at creating mass hysteria of the preBabri Masjid demolition days. A section of the media covered the Anna Hazare fast and Ramdevs proposed fast as if they were IPL matches, while the fast by Irom Sharmila and others goes unnoticed for years. There is something disturbing about glamourising godmen. The efforts to root out corruption were on at various levels even earlier. What adds to the suspicion about the breast-beating against corruption is the timing and the well-organised nature of the protest. The protests also should bring our attention to another part of our democracy whether the government is to be seen as less responsible than the civic action groups. While the action groups play a valuable part by putting pressures on governments in a multiple ways, we need to see that programmes are implemented through an elected government. So where do we draw the line? If the government accepts 99% of ones demands, is there need for continuing an agitation? If there are differences in the joint committee formed by civic action groups and the government, what should be the weightage of each group? After all, the government is an elected body. The trend of babas and swamis coming to the political arena sends a dangerous message. Do we want to emulate Pakistan where the mullahs have ruled the roost for a long time and even now have a big role in political affairs, and which is one of the major reasons for the problems that Pakistan is facing. Baba Ramdev, Sadhvi Ritambhara and Sri Sri Ravi Shankar have full rights as citizens, but to dabble in politics with the claims of spiritual following in to abuse religious spirituality. Many a theory will tumble out of the Ramdev episode. One of the roles it has already played is that it has diverted attention away from the terror trails of the RSS that have ravaged the country from Malegaon to Ajmer. The deeper links of those involved in acts of terrorism with functionaries of organisations affiliated with the RSS are out in the open now. One hopes that the authorities dont lose sight and ensure that guilty of acts of terror are given the punishment due to them. Any violation of peaceful protests for social issues is condemnable. But at the same time, betrayal of compromises and five-star dharnas may have more to them than meets the eye. This much is clear now.