It is not surprising that Rahul Gandhi, under Narendra Modi government, gets a verdict for a two-year jail term. Mahatma Gandhi, who led the nation to freedom from the obnoxious British rule, was in prison a dozen times. He spent a total of 2,338 days, or more than 6 years in jail.

Jawaharlal Nehru was imprisoned nine times during the freedom struggle and was in jail for 3259 days. During the 1930 Salt Satyagraha, Vallabhbhai Patel was sentenced to three months imprisonment.

Gandhi, Nehru, Patel, Netaji Bose and so many other freedom fighters, who incurred the ire of the British regime for voicing their dissent, for listening to their voice of conscience, had to face the British verdict of incarceration; some were sent to the gallows, some were consigned to the dreaded kala pani. 

The British brooked no dissent. Their reaction to the freedom fighters was borne out of fear, fear of losing their iron grip on their governance. They feared that the leaders would organise the people to tell them to pack up and go. The arrogant British took pride in imposing on the people of the Indian subcontinent their British nationalistic rule. To this end they employed means such as lying, spying, jailing, killing people, massacring masses, and legislating iron rules to quell dissent, to smother freedom of speech, to imprison leaders, and to keep prisoners without trial. They used judges and the law courts to do witch-hunting of national leaders and those who did not crawl before them in adulation or apologise for imperial mercy.

BJP government’s aversion to Rahul Gandhi is proverbial. First, because he comes from the Nehru-Gandhi Parivar. The Sangh Parivar had been campaigning inside the Parliament and outside to end the so-called ‘Parivar rule’ of the Gandhis. Their vilification campaign did not spare even India’s first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru who was a freedom fighter and one of the founders of modern India. Narendra Modi was just 14 years of age when Nehru died in 1964. Yet, Modi seems to be knowing enough and more of Nehru, and he and his tribe spare no occasion to cast aspersions on Nehru and attribute all the present ills to Nehru. A well-designed attempt to focus on their agenda of having a Nehru-Gandhi Parivar-mukt Bharat! 

Madhya Pradesh Minister Vishvas Sarang blamed Nehru for his speech of 15 August 1947, the day of our independence, for the current economic ills in the country. Pakistan problem, Kashmir issue, Maharashtra-Karnataka border problem, inflation, Adani scam etc. are due to Nehru, we are told. 

Even Rahul’s surname ‘Gandhi’ is made a butt of insulting joke. Rahul was ridiculed as ‘Pappu’, an ignoramus or a joker.  But when his detractors saw him shaping up as a national figure with courage and commitment, they feared that this ‘Pappu’ was coming in their way of bulldozer governance and a challenge to their Rashtravadi politics.

When his opponents saw Rahul Gandhi as a rising star in the Indian firmament with is Bharat Jodo Yatra and a challenge to their Bharat Thodo Abhiyan, they feared him. When he started confronting the Prime Minister about his alleged unholy alliance with Adani, the Treasury Bench members bit their lips in fury and squirmed in their hot seats uneasily. No wonder Rahul had to pay for his uncomfortable questions in the Parliament. 

Congress President and leader of the Opposition in Rajya Sabha Mallikarjuna Kharge leads a protest rally in the Capital in black outfit and tells the nation that Rahul was punished for the following searching questions he asked in the Parliament: What is Modi’s relationship with Adani? Why is Adani taken along when Prime Minister Modi goes to foreign trips? Why is Adani introduced to foreign dignitaries abroad such as Prime Ministers and Presidents? How come Adani, a small time Gujarati trader, became owner of lakhs of crores so fast and why no watchdogs like ED or CBI go to investigate his assets and look into allegations? Why are most of India’s PSUs dished out to Adani? 

When one is gripped with fear, one can become violent and can adopt any means to eliminate the opponent. Even to dismantle any opposition unity Rahul had to be tackled. Tackle they did by calling him names, by demonising him and by getting him legally sliced and by having him barred from his Parliament membership. 

When Hitler acted with fire and fury to kill Jews and to eliminate his opponents in order to foist his dictatorship and Aryan nationalism, he was digging his own grave. Finally, drunk with power and self-inflated glory, he ended up committing suicide. The balloon burst! He won the ill fame of having been the most repulsive political leader the world ever witnessed. 

Political analysts opinion that persecution of Rahul Gandhi and political vendetta will boomerang on Modi and his regime. When India’s freedom fighters were ill-treated and imprisoned to prevent them from active political life and to kill their spirit, they emerged more powerful and vibrant. Those who gloat in temporary glory by eliminating dissent, by road-blocking opposition and by stonewalling critics can end up in lion’s mouth. And, history will deal with them appropriately too.