The Gurmeet Ram Rahim phenomenon : The Tribune India

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The Gurmeet Ram Rahim phenomenon

WE now have the luxury to study the Gurmeet Ram Rahim phenomenon in a somewhat detached manner.

The Gurmeet Ram Rahim phenomenon

Meteoric rise of the ‘Messenger of God’. PTI



Ranbir Singh

WE now have the luxury to study the Gurmeet Ram Rahim phenomenon in a somewhat detached manner. Some hypotheses that explains it are:

1  Gurmeet Ram Rahim Insan's rise as a religious leader of substance has to be understood, in the first instance, by the stranglehold of the tradition of respecting the saints, mahatmas and gurus, real or bogus, by the credulous masses that begin to follow them without bothering to check their credentials.

2  Secondly, it may be attributed to the powerful appeal of what WH Morris Jones, the famous English political scientist, calls the 'saintly idiom'. This idiom, which implies projection by a person as an ascetic or a holy man, has been successfully used not only by such genuine saints as Mahatma Gandhi and Jayaprakash Narayan but also crooks such as Gurmeet Ram Rahim Insan.

3  Thirdly, the blame for the popularity of the likes of him has to be shared squarely by the media that provide space or slots to such persons, at times, for monetary gains or commercial interest.

4  Fourthly, this malady will have to be demystified as the logical result of the stranglehold of superstition over the people of India. TV serials and pseudo-historians have also played an important role in strengthening it. It has facilitated the task of the self-styled godmen to create mass followings.

5  Fifthly, the appeal of divine powers to provide instant relief from all sorts of problems claimed by this impostor of Dera Sacha Sauda also enabled him to build a broad support-base of devotees for himself.

6  Sixthly, the hypnotising power of his demagogy, the claim of social service and role in the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi also enabled this self-styled guru to emerge as a religious leader with considerable following.

7  Seventhly, the success of his stunts has also to be attributed to his organisational skill. He not only made successful propaganda regarding his divine powers through the print and electronic media but also used a widespread network of agents to mobilise his followers from among the credulous people by promising short-cuts to salvation, instant relief from diseases, liberation from poverty, prospect of employment and relief from stress and strain.

8  Eighthly, his success in projecting himself as the 'Messenger of God' through his role as a super hero in films, produced and directed by him, also made his followers to believe his reel image as a real image.

9  Ninthly, the large-scale support for this godman may also be attributed to the quest of a substantial number of persons to escape the drudgery of the daily routine of hard and monotonous work. They also found his dera a source of free or cheap entertainment.

10  Tenthly, an important source of strength of such camouflaged devils is the considerable political support they enjoy and their mastery over a captive vote-bank. This is evident from the political clout that he has been able to enjoy during the Indian National Lok Dal, Congress and BJP governments in Haryana.

11 Eleventhly, it has to be perceived as a part of the national phenomenon of persistence of the culture of obscurantism that has continued to prevail despite the powerful impact of modernisation in the Indian society. As a matter of fact, it has been further strengthened by the use of modern information and communication technology.

12  Lastly, it is the logical result of the failure of the Indian state to perform its constitutional obligation of promoting scientific temper and rational outlook even after more than six decades of its incorporation in the fundamental duties enshrined in the Indian Constitutional Amendment Act (1976) on the one hand and the success of the reactionary forces of revivalism to further enhance the culture of dogmatic temper and irrational outlook on the other.

Stop proliferation of gurus

Be that as it may, the farce of the Gurmeet Ram Rahim phenomenon has to be perceived as a result of the paradox of economic growth and social regression due to lopsided development in which human development has remained a low priority. It must be perceived as a part of the large-scale perennial problem of the proliferation of countless self-styled saints in all parts of India; it will be dangerous to ignore their nefarious activities for short-term political gains. It is high time that the Indian state takes cognisance of them and initiates requisite action against their highly undesirable activities.

The writer is a former Dean, Kurukshetra University

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