Subramanian Swamy
The title of ‘Protagonist’ can hardly be attributed to a
person with so-called Hindu extremist ideologies. Subramanian Swamy is one such
person who is barely in the limelight but deserves to be. Who can get away with
calling Sonia Gandhi ‘a fifth-class pass’ or calling Priyanka Gandhi ‘an
alcoholic’ without much media scrutiny, let alone having their head held high?
In 2011, Mr Swamy wrote an article advocating disfranchisement of Muslims who were not ready to embrace the fact that both Hindus and Muslims have the same ancestral line. This article caused him a lot of things in life – Harvard dropped the courses he was teaching, media criticized him for communal hate and his personal life was being monitored closely by his detractors, for whom he couldn't care less about. However, this article garnered huge support from the right wing followers and that, along with the intent of the article was his objective.
While many people call him anti-Muslim, he asks his critics to stop speaking in hyperbole and argues that all religions in India have the same core values. Although he is a staunch Hindu, his secular credentials are amply exhibited in his marriage to a Parsi woman. He also points to the fact that his own daughter is married to a Muslim man. Mr Swamy has studied law and it shows. He has supported the abolition of Article 370 of the Indian Constitution un-disguisedly. He was the one who submitted a petition against A. Raja in the 2G scam case to the Supreme Court of India. This led to the arrest of A. Raja in 2012 and his subsequent imprisonment for 15 months. This act by Mr Swamy unearthed one of the biggest and most infamous scams of India. While Sonia Gandhi filed a fake affidavit citing a foreign degree to the Election Commission, Mr Swamy filed a case in the High court to impose a fine on Ms Gandhi. Ms Gandhi later admitted that it was a ‘mistake’ and apologized to the Election Commission.
Mr Swamy’s experience with the Planning Commission of India and as a Cabinet Minister makes him an extremely reliable person to his party. When one juxtaposes Mr Swamy and Mr Kejriwal, one can undeniably see that Mr Swamy is the better executor of ideas when it comes to fighting corruption and this has won him many an admirer. If Mr Swamy doesn't merit a place in the Indian political folklore then I don’t know who does.
In 2011, Mr Swamy wrote an article advocating disfranchisement of Muslims who were not ready to embrace the fact that both Hindus and Muslims have the same ancestral line. This article caused him a lot of things in life – Harvard dropped the courses he was teaching, media criticized him for communal hate and his personal life was being monitored closely by his detractors, for whom he couldn't care less about. However, this article garnered huge support from the right wing followers and that, along with the intent of the article was his objective.
While many people call him anti-Muslim, he asks his critics to stop speaking in hyperbole and argues that all religions in India have the same core values. Although he is a staunch Hindu, his secular credentials are amply exhibited in his marriage to a Parsi woman. He also points to the fact that his own daughter is married to a Muslim man. Mr Swamy has studied law and it shows. He has supported the abolition of Article 370 of the Indian Constitution un-disguisedly. He was the one who submitted a petition against A. Raja in the 2G scam case to the Supreme Court of India. This led to the arrest of A. Raja in 2012 and his subsequent imprisonment for 15 months. This act by Mr Swamy unearthed one of the biggest and most infamous scams of India. While Sonia Gandhi filed a fake affidavit citing a foreign degree to the Election Commission, Mr Swamy filed a case in the High court to impose a fine on Ms Gandhi. Ms Gandhi later admitted that it was a ‘mistake’ and apologized to the Election Commission.
Mr Swamy’s experience with the Planning Commission of India and as a Cabinet Minister makes him an extremely reliable person to his party. When one juxtaposes Mr Swamy and Mr Kejriwal, one can undeniably see that Mr Swamy is the better executor of ideas when it comes to fighting corruption and this has won him many an admirer. If Mr Swamy doesn't merit a place in the Indian political folklore then I don’t know who does.
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