The sceptre and new coronation of Hindutva
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Parliaments are often described as the sanctum sanctorum of democracy. Renovation of this sacred place and the construction of a new one are normally political events that generally inspire confidence and joy among votaries of democracy. But in the world's largest democratic country, none of these joys is visible when a new sanctum sanctorum with state-of-the-art technology is dedicated to the nation at the cost of a thousand crore rupees. As the new Parliament building is to be inaugurated tomorrow, what is in prominent display is not the excitement of the country and its people, but deepening concerns. Any construction is not merely a construction. Precise political ideas are engraved on every stone. It has already become clear that the entire new Parliament building is full of such political slogans and declarations of transition to a 'New India'. The concept of 'New India' promoted by the Sangh Parivar is very clear. In a sense, it is the Hindu Rashtra declaration of the Sangh Parivar itself. In that context, the birth anniversary of one of the ideologues of Hinduism, VD Savarkar has been chosen for the inauguration too. All this is the source of the concern of the democrats. Naturally, the secular political movements that represent them will protest. It is the political resistance that is necessary for the survival of democracy. Therefore, it becomes imperative to respect those protests.
Undoubtedly, the inauguration of the new Parliament building is a momentous occasion to be marked in history. Unfortunately, it has turned into a huge political controversy due to the undemocratic actions of the government. Congress leader Rahul Gandhi remarked that it is a building built on the bricks of ego. In utter disregard of constitutional values, the Prime Minister is inaugurating the building instead of the President who is the first citizen of the country. It cannot be reduced to a mere matter of protocol. It should be seen as an clear indicator of Hindutva's foray into a new India. The government has been countering this criticism by pointing out the earlier instance of former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi's inauguration of the Parliament Annex. There is a big difference between the two. The inauguration of the Annex by Indira Gandhi and the opening of Parliament Library by Rajiv Gandhi cannot be equated with new events. All that happened there was to make some minor additions to an existing structure. Here, a new parliament has been built. It is 'new' in every sense.
It is clear that the Modi administration is aiming for a 'New India' that will push all the ideas put forward by the architects of democratic India into oblivion. Take the case of the 'Sengol installation' which is announced one of the highlights of the inauguration ceremony. It is portrayed as the commemoration of the first prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru receiving the baton of power from Viceroy Mountbatten and announcing the country's independenc in the presence of Brahmin priests from Tamil Nadu. Modi plans to become the first prime minister of a 'new India' through a re-enactment of the said ceremony. Although the veracity of this story about the sceptre remains to be clarified, what Nehru did was to hand over the gifted sceptre to the museum in Allahabad. He correctly understood that an object that was a symbol of power in the days of monarchy would be a mere museum piece in the age of democracy and bequeathed it for the students of history and future generations. Years later, when another Prime Minister installs the same symbol in the the temple of democracy, that can only be seen as a sign of autocracy and monarchy. Therefore, the opposition parties' statement boycotting the inauguration is not a mere political gimmick as alleged by Amit Shah and others; it is a creative intervention against the transition of the state from democracy to the autocracy of Hindutva.
The new Parliament building has also been built as a part of the Modi government's Central Vista project - an elaborate project that will bring the parliament, various offices of the government under one roof, and also new residences the Prime Minister and the Vice President. In fact, such an idea did exist earlier. The truth is that when Modi came to power, this project was misused politically by the Sangh Parivar. The total project, expected to cost Rs 20,000 crore, was launched during the Covid era. Naturally, at a time when the country was going through a major financial crisis, it was necessary to put the project on hold, at least for the time being. However, they went ahead with the project ignoring all opposition voices. It was for this reason that when Modi laid the foundation stone of the Parliament building, the opposition boycotted it. However, when Modi inaugurates the temple tomorrow, the opposition is staying away from the ceremony for more relevant political reasons. It is, to borrow their own words, a Parliament House that is being stripped of its soul. Therefore, this boycott is a creative struggle pregnant with meaning.
