Opinion - Editorials

Modi and the peace march

NONE WILL GRUDGE attempts at mobilising the people in a campaign for peace in Gujarat. The Army, moved into the State in the wake of the violence that broke out across Gujarat after the VHP-sponsored bandh on February 28, could certainly contain the violence and in this sense achieved what was not possible (for obvious reasons) by the civil administration in the State. But then, the men in uniform cannot be allowed to stay on for good. Apart from the fact that the Army is equipped (and trained) essentially to protect the borders, the presence of its units in the various towns could help in building confidence among the people, particularly those who detest fratricidal violence. The jawans in the various towns, indeed, could deter the storm troopers who indulged in killing, loot and arson soon after February 27 from carrying on with their violent ways. This, however, is not the end game and it is important that the people across the State are mobilised against violence. It is also important that such an attempt, at least at this stage, will have to involve a cross section of members from the political establishment.

But then, the initiative by Union Defence Minister, George Fernandes, along with the various fora representing business enterprises in the State cannot lead to the desired end as long as the Chief Minister, Narendra Modi, is directly involved in it. It may be true that any effort to keep out the Chief Minister of the State from a peace march would look odd. But then, Mr. Modi is guilty of having not just failed in his duty as Chief Minister to ensure protection of the lives and property of the citizens in the State but is perceived as having empathised with the storm troopers of the various Sangh Parivar outfits who went about killing and maiming men, women and children from among the minority community. This being the popular perception across the State and elsewhere, a peace march with Mr. Modi there is certainly not going to help restore confidence. The efforts that began on Sunday in Ahmedabad will fail in their objective for this very reason. And given this reality, however harsh or incongruous it may sound, the imperative for Mr. Fernandes and his masters in the ruling NDA combine was to ensure that Mr. Modi stayed out of the event. That such a demand had come from even a section of those who received the peace march with enthusiasm (as has been reported) renders it necessary to keep Mr. Modi out of such campaigns at least in the coming days.

All these do not mean that the initiative to involve the people, including the victims of the violence in particular, is to be given up. The sporadic violence witnessed even in those localities that were traversed by the few hundred men on Sunday, should not detract from the utility of such an endeavour. The events since February 27 and the empathy that marked the attitude of the Narendra Modi dispensation in the State towards the violent mobs have strengthened their resolve to go further ahead with their majoritarian agenda and the storm troopers will be determined to frustrate any attempt to restore peace in Gujarat. And while it is important, even at this stage, to let the Army remain, there is the pressing need to convey to the survivors of the violence that retribution cannot be the end game. A concerted campaign involving members from the majority community alone will assure the victims that the space for reconciliation is not lost. It is for this reason that one expects that all those behind the initiative for the peace march on April 27 — Mr. Fernandes along with the representatives of industry and business — will insist that Mr. Modi and his colleagues are kept out of the initiative. This is important now because what is involved touches on not merely the image of the personalities involved but also on the very idea of a campaign against retribution. The fact that Mr. Modi is perceived to have empathised with the perpetrators of violence is something that cannot be wished away.

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