Dictionaries have defined fascism as a governmental system led by a dictator having complete power, forcibly suppressed opposition and criticism, regimenting all industry, commerce etc.; and emphasizing on aggressive nationalism and often racism. It’s a political system that employs the principles and methods of fascism, especially one established by Mussolini in Italy 1922-43.In this context, political scientist Dr. Lawrence Brit in his article on fascism, studying the fascist regimes of Mussolini, Hitler (Germany), Franco (Spain), Suharto (Indonesia), and Pinochet (Chile), found they all had 14 elements in common, identified characteristics of fascism described as Powerful and Continuing Nationalism, Disdain for the Recognition of Human Rights, Identification of Enemies, Scapegoats as Unifying Cause, Supremacy of the Military, Rampant Sexism, Controlled Mass Media, Obsession with National Security, Intertwined Religion and Government, Protected Corporate Power, Suppressed Labour Power, Disdain for Intellectuals and the Arts, Obsession with Crime and Punishment, Rampant Cronyism and Corruption, and Fraudulent Elections. All these 14 signs of fascism are seen to be manifest in the governance of the current NDA Union Government under the veneer of democratic rule of law based system of governance without a formal declaration of national emergency.
Under a declared emergency, people know well that their fundamental rights are suspended and the main issues facing the people are undermined with impunity ostensibly on the pretext of public interests. But under the watch of the NDA Union Government, it is seemingly undeclared emergency where there is no accountability of the elected transient majority government. There is wide scale bashings of minorities and dalits, targeted violence against them, lack of safety of our women and children, minorities and Dalits reeling under fear and insecurity, government maintaining façade of inclusive development and within this frame allowing politics of exclusion, politics of hatred and politics of marginalization having full run, official machinery, especially police playing footsie to the ruling political class playing partisan and discriminatoryagainst minorities, women and vulnerable sections of people, media fully regimented ignoring people’s problems, not scrutinizing government, criticising opposition, demonizing others for country’s ills, silencing voice of dissents, in the process ignoring the Constitutional postulates of Equality, Justice and Fraternity for all citizens of India equally and alike.
Religion in the present regime has become toxic and is used for majoritarian bullying of minorities and dalits. Religion of Hindutva is also used as a tool of targeted violence against minorities and dalits and their marginalisation as against the time-tested tenets of Hinduism that broadly unifies humans (people) amidst their diversity and pluralism and, in every aspect, is tolerant and accommodating. In this backdrop, the nation is undergoing very bleak crises where, a large employer Jet Airways is closed, Air India isin terrible losses, BSNL and MTNL face huge losses and are on the verge of closure, HAL is almost bankrupt, Postal department running huge losses, Videocon bankrupt, Tata DOCOMO closed, Aircel perished, JP Group finished, ONGC undergoing worst performance, country’s 36 largest debtors missing from the country, banking and financial sector being in big crisis of mega losses, unemployment being all time high in 45 years, Railways being privatized, three times more martyrs than the previous UPA Government, ever increasing social strife and tension.
All such issues were raised by the opposition, intellectuals, groups of well-meaning retired top officials from diverse official disciplines, economists and social scientists in this year’s General Elections and the captive regimented national media did not highlight them. Elections were fought fraudulently on emotive issues of majoritarian politics, politics of exclusion, politics of hatred, politics of divisiveness and demonizing religious minorities and politics of muscular nationalism, while putting real issues facing the nation under the carpet. It is now clear that majority of our people did not bother about the real issues facing them or elections machinery was manipulated to the advantages of the Sangh Pariwar. Perhaps India does not deserve democracy. If at all, there is democracy, it is election centric only. Otherwise, for all practical purposes there is no democracy in India as there is fledgling rule of law with no respect for human rights.
For all practical purposes, India is ruled by one man government where Ministers are enjoying power and perks, with all trappings of democratic joint responsibility being on paper only. Ministers do not know mostly what is happening. Secretaries are commandeered to send directly notes to Prime Minister’s Office where decisions are taken for implementation by the concerned Ministry as a fait accompli.Union Government is PMO driven. Such situation obtains only in dictatorial regime and not in democracy. Hence, undeclared emergency in the nation!