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Kashmir row: Satyagraha can pose challenge to government: Journalist Shekhar Gupta
He was answering a question from audience during a colloquium organised to mark the 150th birth anniversary celebrations of Mahatma Gandhi
“If Kashmiris adopt Satyagraha, it will become quite a challenge for the central government,” journalist Shekhar Gupta said while answering a question from audience during a colloquium organised to mark the 150th birth anniversary celebrations of Mahatma Gandhi.
Philanthropist Rajshree Birla and advocate Nikhil Goyal were also present in the event organised by Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, Chandigarh Kendra.
When asked about Kashmiris having adopted Satyagraha, Shekhar Gupta said, “There is Satyagraha to an extent as people are angry with the government and feeling humiliated but there is a fear of militancy as well.” “But I think, if Kashmiris use this method, it will become a challenge for the government. Right now, it’s a mix of both and we cannot have Satyagraha and militancy at the same time,” he said.
Calling Gandhi India’s “biggest brand,” Gupta said the former taught “symbolism” to leaders.
Talking about Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s latest video wherein he was seen picking up garbage from a beach in Mamallapuram (Tamil Nadu), Gupta said there are mixed reactions to the video. “It’s quite possible that it (garbage) was put there for him to clean but what was he doing? He wasn’t trying to tell you that he does this in the morning. He was using the act as a symbolism to bring a behavioural change,” the journalist said.
“Modi used this symbolism to bring a change and Gandhi was a champion of this art,” he said, adding, “Modi is also a very good event manager but the leader who first used events as a vehicle of spreading a political idea, was Gandhi.”
“Generations after generations Indian leaders have learnt from Gandhi but nobody has or can become him,” he said.
