Baba Rampal’s Conflict with BJP
Baba Rampal’s arrest after a deadly ashram clashes is a very complex issue. Far more complex than any ordinary perception. A direct challenge to judiciary; a private army; a huge following; a business enterprise; a sustained secretive rebellion; alleged maoist links; but still a failure in the end for Baba Rampal. The maoist-link theory has been floated today only, that too through rogue intelligence officers; so, I don’t know how much to believe it. However, if the theory is true, then that per se is a reason enough for the police to have acted in the manner they did, and this is also a big failure of maoism in semi-urban India. But, I don’t think this theory has any basis. It has just been floated to present the BJP state government in a better light, whom all security agencies, especially IB, support wholeheartedly.
The origin of this conflict lies in a 2006 episode when the arya samajis from the surrounding 27 villages attacked Satlok Ashram of Baba Rampal. At that time also, Baba Rampal’s supporters responded in a similar manner. They counter-attacked from a height with stones and more, leading to many injuries and one casuality. The arya samajis have strong affiliations with BJP. Baba also seems to be having the support of at least some quarters in BJP. The previous Congress government also seems to have ignored his activities. Probably, he was supporting some politicians from Congress as well.
Baba Rampal Made a Wrong Choice?
Nobody, Baba Rampal or whoever, can build such a large empire without the support of politicians and police. Had he substituted some legal advice for all political advice, this episode would not have taken such a violent turn. Till now, all cases against him, whether murder or contempt of court, were weak. I believe had he greased right palms at the right places, he would have gotten away with some small punishment in the contempt case, and the murder case was anyways a no-starter.
It seems he got over-terrified. Also, I think, he is not that well-rooted and all his rebellion is fake: a true rebel would always keep an escape route ready sans property. I think his was a case of dilemma between ego and practicality, and he bent a bit too much in favour of ego. But the final word has not yet been written: let us see how he conducts himself hereafter, and let’s see how much of his ego was self-respect.
Conundrum of Compromising Self-Respect or Doing Self-Harm
However, this episode is also a scary one for self-respecting people. BJP hooligans are in a habit of scaring people though mob formation. This happens not only to celebrities but also to commoners. However, offlate, the police has lost neutrality. They openly support BJP hooligans. So, always a difficult choice has to be made. Whether to counter attack the BJP hooligans and expect police retaliation as a corollary. Or to compromise self-respect.
It is always better to influence the police into neutrality through bribes or whatever else. But, of course, this also comes at the loss of self-respect. How long can one keep compromising one’s self-respect without making it a habit is contextual and a very difficult question to answer. Moreover, this influencing of police may not work in the present paradigm, even after literally licking the ass of the police.
Of course, neither the friendship nor the enimity of police is good, stays. But now when the situation has arisen where a conflict with BJP turns into a conflict with the police by default, how long the police can be avoided is questionable. In the present circumstances, anybody who openly, or even not-so-openly, supports BJP ought to be avoided as well as the police is avoided because BJP and police seem to have formed a family — or should we say the police has joined the Sangh Parivar.
However, if things come to extreme desperation, and it becomes impossible to compromise anymore with one’s self-respect, commiting suicide by attacking the police is the only option left in the present day India.
© 2014 Ankur Mutreja