While the farm
protests continue to linger on, there seems to be some new turn every now and
then. These turns at times do add some drama and perhaps some comic relief to
the observers. One such element that seems to have stirred some debate in the
last twenty four hours so has been a few tweets in support of the protests by
some celebrities. This might not seem surprising but then those celebrities or
so-called celebrities have nothing to do with India. Late evening yesterday,
singer Rihanna tweeted in favour of the farm protests followed later by porn
actress, Mia Khalifa. If this was not enough, in between them, the child
environmental activist Greta decided to add her voice. Meena Harris, whose
claim to fame lies in she being the niece of US Vice President also decided to
add her voice. These voices were sufficient to be a catalyst to the voices of
the Indian opposition and the farm protest supporters. They see this as an
internationalisation that would eventually hurt Modi and bring him down. They
see it as perhaps the step in bringing international pressure and sanctions.
While this might be a pipe dream, any such voice from abroad is always music to
the ears of Indian left liberal ecosystem that is currently under siege and
engaged in a rearguard action with uncertain outcomes.
At the outset,
those would have hardly any impact barring few theatrics in global dealings
with India. These celebrities are known to tweet or post on Instagram or
Facebook for consideration and no doubt that would have been the case even now.
It would be a surprise to find if they are aware where India is located. In
other words, the probability of finding India on a map leave Punjab is close to
zero. Greta too believes every anti-establishment protest is
pro-environmentalism. It is ironical that the farmers want to perpetuate a
system that is antithetical to what Greta is campaigning for over the last few
years. This indicates she is another pawn of anti-establishmentarian ecosystem that
keeps manufacturing protests across the world where they find the regimes
inconvenient. India is on the radar of
protest industry and it in many suggests India has come of age. While there
would be little to go beyond dissing or even ridiculing these so-called celebrities
adding their voice to the protest groups, what needs a deeper discussion would
be the India being on the radar of international protest industry.
The protest
industry is built on the premise of being a barrier to entry for the other
countries into the elite club. India is expected to record good growth rates
and bounce back from the pandemic induced recession fairly soon. India is
attracting investment from multiple quarters and is likely to emerge as an
alternative to China. India’s prowess in technology is likely to see it make
impressive strides and this would be a bonus for it as its economy hits an
upward trajectory. This in many ways would seek to dislodge the positions of
the current global establishment powers. India is desirous of a high place in
the global power table and is not unapologetic about its aspirations. There would
be little achieved for the current global elitist powers if they were to allow
India onto the seat of power. There would be natural barriers of entry that
would sought to be erected. Any act of dissent in India would be magnified and
manifested to the Western audience. The West can never come to terms with
India rising especially in under 75
years. Their premise of white man having the burden of civilizing the natives
would come to a naught if India were to displace them. Therefore they need to
stop India. Their first task was obviously trying to bind the Indian leadership
post Independence into a moral suasion force. By highlighting the so-called
peaceful struggle for independence in contrast to the violent revolutions or
wars elsewhere they sought to create a trap for India. Any deviation from the
so-called peaceful methods was seen and described as a contrast to the Indian
founding ideals. The current approach of PM Modi has challenged many of the
long standing propositions on defence, economy and internal affairs. The revisionism
has not gone well obviously with many in the outgoing ecosystem which had flourished
on the rhetoric for more than six decades.
Secondly, as
India makes its way into the global power calculus, it would obviously come
under increasing scrutiny. Any smallest of deviations would be highlighted and
amplified in the global media and elite circuit. The global chaterati has
thrived on patronage in Indian elite circuit and vice versa and they would be
in no mood to accommodate the new establishment. Therefore, it goes without
saying that the Indian actions would come under stress. There would increasing
pressure on PM Modi with implicit threats of sanctions. The Indian internal
establishment of the opposition would not hesitate to invoke global role in meddling
with India’s internal affairs. Be it the Delhi nobles of 1526 or 1761 or the
recent attempts in the run up to the 2014 elections when many non-BJP MPs asked
the US not to issue visa to Modi, these have a long history. The Indian opposition
is dreaming of the rehash of 2011 Ram Lila Maidan but unable to manufacture it.
Similarly they are trying to invoke global celebrities with following in the
Western circuit to use their voices to spread anti-Modi messages to the Western
audience and thus indirectly put pressure on the Western governments to act.
There is no
doubt that the Western world has no locus standi in India’s internal affairs
something highlighted by the statement of the Ministry of External Affairs.
India has reacted fast ostensibly playing to the Broken Windows theory. Support
has been built up from sections of Bollywood and sports celebrities. The attempt
to intervene from the West would obviously invite domestic build of nationalism
that would go against the interests of the farm groups. Any attempt to intervene
or comment on internal affairs of India would play against the interests of the
domestic anti-establishment. Yet that is hardly their objective. Their objective
is to mobilise global establishment opinion against India and seek to delay
India’s place in the global power table. Furthermore, as India builds up its
power, there would be continued challenges and perhaps would intensify in its
intensity. These are merely the first signs of something India is doing right.
India can take care of itself. What is currently happening is a long term game
to keep India at bay from the global power circuit. The previous governments
accepted their place. Modi is challenging the global power assumptions and unlike
Vajpayee seems to be here to stay for very long time. This is the real reason
for those invisible hand in provoking India from foreign shores.
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