Wordsmiths & Newsplumbers

BY R K MISRA Deceit enchants even as cynicism is an unpleasant way of saying the truth. The manner in which the Somnath Trust went about banning the entry of non-Hindus without permission, into the Gujarat based Somnath temple last week represents the tip of the proverbial iceberg of conspiratorial planning. And cynical as it may sound, there is need to put the truth, or the lack of it, in proper perspective The Somnath temple is one of the ancient  temples of India and is first among the twelve adi jyotirlings . It enjoys unparalleled piety and position in the faith .Thus anything here or about touches the faith immensely and therefore the importance of a religious decision that impacts politics in much more than a passing manner. Comparisons may be odious but analysis can be instructive. First, the timings. Whether by coincidence or by planning, the newsbreak of the Somnath temple ban comes in close proximity to two major developments on the Indian national stage. F

BY R K MISRA Originality is nothing but judicious imitation. If Narendra Modi the saffron soul-boy, shows inspirational traces of Indira Gandhi-India’s most hardwired  political personage, then Arvind Kejriwal, the  anti-corruption crusader turned chief constable of  India’s capital  seems to be following in the footsteps  of the national captain. In 2001 when  he took over as  the chief minister of Gujarat, Modi was a lilliputian. He  initially grew in girth through  communal cleaving. After 2004  when the BJP’s NDA gave way to the congress led UPA, he gained traction  by the simple expedient of a million pinpricks to bleed a slumbering Goliath which was oscillating between smug overconfidence and perilous management of inner contradictions. In Gujarat, Modi operated on three fronts simultaneously . He emerged as the Hindu heart throb (hriday samrat) through rank majoritarianism, sheared and subjugated  rivals within, even as he went about neutering the oppos