Internet: The Great Indian Equalizer

All our lives we have seen how Hindu conservatives are discriminated against in India. What started during the British rule has thrived during successive Congress regimes. An American newspaper says what the nation has been saying about Manmohan Singh and the entire Congress machinery goes into a tizzy. However, when liberal rags in the west were equating the RSS with KKK (a murderous racist organization in the US) or when falsehoods about Narendra Modi were being spread in the west (in collusion with Indian liberals in the west), nary a peep was heard either in the government or the media.

The pseudo secular brigade has an absolute control of the media. Post Godhra riot is called a pogrom while 1984 massacre of the Sikhs is brushed under the carpet. Narendra Modi has been called every name in the book for the post Godhra riots (unofficial toll: about 1400 Muslims and 700 Hindus). Hiteshwar Saikia who was CM during the Nellie riots in Assam (unofficial toll: 5000 Muslims) has been referred to as a nationalist who crushed militancy because he belonged to Congress. Judgments exonerating Narendra Modi were eyed with suspicion and judges deemed in competent while the judgment in Naroda-Patiya was deemed extremely fair (because it placated the pseudo-secular brigade). One gets the idea.

With the advent of Internet, the playing field has become a lot more level. Try as they may, the Congress mavens cannot control what goes on the net or the social media on the net. Anyone with a net connection can get his or her opinion out there. Like-minded Hindus can meet over the net without any fear. Consequently, the leaders who are marginalized in the media (negative publicity does not count) can reach the voters via the net. Ronald Reagan is credited with the idea of talking directly with the voters, bypassing the print media.

If Narendra Modi gets on the net and communicates with his supporters or critics, no one can stop him. He does not need a VISA or support of the media houses to do so. Sibal-Ambika Soni duo can put blocks on Twitter accounts but how far can they take their oppressive ways in the infinite world of the net? Narendra Modi talked to millions on Google+. Ajay Devgan (a rare Modi supporter in Bollywood) mediated the “Hangout”. Kanchan Gupta expresses it better than I when he says:

What Modi did was simple. He bypassed mainstream media, especially the English language media, such as it is, and did his own thing. Since technology is no longer the preserve of big media there’s little that could be done to prevent it. And while doing so, as the transcript of his Hangout will show, he spoke on the future and not the past. There was a message in this: While large sections of the media which shares its agenda with Modi’s political opponents would have liked Friday night’s show to be dominated by the past, Youngistan looks at and thinks about the future. Modi addressed their concerns, leaving his critics to fret and fume. And that's why he connected so well to the millions of eager listeners.

I like the term Youngistan. The Indian youth have the most at stake. Like any poor country, we have a very high population of the young. The youth can adopt a blasé attitude, marinade in their hormones and hope for the best or they can grab the opportunity, make the right choice and vote for a forward thinking and performing leader rather than the good looking empty shirt. Unless the young go out in large numbers and vote objectively in the next elections, the future of India will remain mired in the status quo, which clearly is unacceptable.
Our blogpost on the same topic can be read at: http://thenethindu.blogspot.com/2011/01/indian-media-vs-internet-hindus.html
Mr. Kanchan Gupta's article can be read at: http://www.dailypioneer.com/columnists/item/52366-hanging-out-with-namo-late-into-friday-night.html