Journalist and former Union Minister Arun Shourie on Saturday said that while a fertile soil needs to be there for communal polarisation, seeds for the same are being sown by those in power. “The primary responsibility for this rests on the government. Five years ago, these gau rakshaks were not there,” said Arun Shourie, whose recent book is Two Saints: Speculation around and about Ramakrishna Paramahamsa and Ramana Maharshi.
In conversation with journalist Shekhar Gupta for NDTV’s ‘Off The Cuff’ programme, at the Taj Coromandel hotel, Mr. Shourie said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi must act as the country's moral conscience. “I studied PM Modi's Twitter profile when the Muzzaffar Nagar riots were going on. He was tweeting about everything but that. He was even tweeting a Happy Birthday message to film director James Cameron. Modi is the Prime Minister and he must set the moral code for the country,” he said.
Speaking about the book, he said it deals with cerebral experiences of two saints. "They embodied the essence of all Indic religions. As long as that is the essence we follow, we will be one. But all the symbols associated are external. My fear is that the Indian state is not strong enough to contain the tension. The teachings of these saints are relevant in today's times," said Mr. Shourie.
When asked if his previous work on Christian missionaries, Fatwas given by Mullahs and a book critical on B.R. Ambedkar in a way laid the foundation for the rise of Mr. Modi's brand of politics, he said, "All my life, I have written against authority and scriptural authority. I have written a book about Supreme Court judgments. What ideology was I following then? We are reading motives into what other people are doing," he said.
Dwelling on the role of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, he said, "RSS is not doing what they ought to do. As far as working during natural disasters [is concerned], they are good. As far as governance is concerned, they are not equipped. If there are divisive tendencies, then RSS is a part of the trend."
