GE ( POL SCI .
) ASSIGNMENT
By
Vidhi Arora
Sociology hons
21/1549
Question: What do you understand
by Gandhigiri? Can it be an effective
weapon in the eradication of
corruption?
Answer :
Gandhigiri is a neologism in India
which is used to express the tenets
of Gandhism (the ideas of Mohandas
Gandhi which include Satyagraha,
non-violence, and truth) in
contemporary terms.
After the success ofLage Raho
Munna Bhai,
discussions on Gandhiji are not
considered to be boring affairs
anymore and yet another
generation has begun its tryst with
the man of the millennium. Though,
we all unanimously feel that today's
society needs an urgent change, life
moves on after a few statements of
dissatisfaction.
If today's society is ridden with
violence, then let us remember that
Gandhiji lived in an era of
ruthless fascism and imperialism.
Therein lay his appeal, the appeal
which a lamp holds in a dark room.
Without the help of any mass media,
he could spin millions into one
thread, who held an undying faith in
him. Time and again, his methods
have shown his presence. Be it
Martin Luther King, Nelson Mandela
or Medha Patkar they all achieved
success through non-violent
struggles and acknowledged the
Mahatma as their inspirational
factor.
In 1947, where 55000 soldiers
couldn't stop the communal frenzy in
Punjab, all the riots stopped at once,
in an equally communal Bengal due
to the presence of Mountbatten's
one-man army-Gandhi. But can
terrorism be fought through
Gandhian means? The answer is
complex and lies in the root cause of
terrorism. A tyrannical and morally
bankrupt Britain wouldn't have won
a war using Satyagraha against
Hitler, as it requires virtuous
warriors, who can die for the victory
of truth.
No one is born with an AK-47 in his
hand. If
brainwashing can make a person
pick up a rifle,then cannot a reform
bring him back to the mainstream
society? The current system of
punishment prescribed by law is
useless as it
gives no importance to reform and
rehabilitation; the stress is on the
effect and not the cause.
Those who are happy and satisfied
with whatever is happening in Iraq
or Afghanistan may think otherwise.
But the fact will remain that in all
these cases one form of barbarism
has replaced another one, where
you kill one and they kill hundred.
When we have failed with the
current methods, why not give
Gandhism a chance?
Many of the Mahatma's methods
were
considered to be an Alice in
Wonderland idea
even then; but they worked and
dazzled the
world. A proper method of non-
violent struggle
suiting the current scenario should
be worked out and they have to be
modified in the light of the present
day, keeping the basic tenets intact.
Mahatma Gandhi had himself said
that weapons such as fast unto
death cannot be used on all
occasions and on all opponents. His
elevation to the status of a demigod
made him somewhat inaccessible.
We know the dhoti clad Gandhi, who
always travelled in a third class
compartment; but when we hear
that he was a London educated
barrister, who earned 5000 pounds
every year and that he gave up all
that to make some change possible,
then he becomes the paragon of
virtue-Mahatma. Gandhiji didn't truly
invent these ideas; he more or less
rediscovered them, and applied
them differently as the basic
principles of his struggle were
eternal.
To suddenly turn to Gandhi will be
difficult for us, for whom, corruption
has become more or less a way of
life and Gandhian philosophy
requires us to win over the evil in
others and within
ourselves. It will be undoubtedly
difficult for us to hold on to the faith
and optimism. The problem is that,
even if we can fight the modern day
issues with Gandhism, it will be a
Herculean task to convince an entire
nation to be a part of the movement.
But this sudden interest in the
Mahatma should go beyond 'brand
Gandhigiri'. If one movie can
lead to a demand for Gandhian
literature, then
hopefully, this in turn might
eventually lead to a
new wave of revolution. Like
anything, even
freedom has to be redefined and the
second
phase of our freedom movement is
yet to begin.
Only then will August 15 hold any
relevance to
the majority of our population,
whose life is still in doldrums. But
questions regarding the
effectiveness of non-violence and
our right to
self-defence will never end and we
perhaps need another Mahatma to
answer them; the irony being that a
Mahatma is not born every time and
the hope being that a new wave of
awakening is hopefully knocking our
door.