바카라Jo Ram ko laye hai, hum unko layenge,
Humlog phirse BJP to Jitayenge바카라
If one stays for a few hours in Chhindwara- a city in the Mahakoshal region of Madhya Pradesh- it is difficult to miss this song. The campaign tableau of BJP바카라s candidate Vivek Bunty Sahu consists of three things- a large poster of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, his own portrait in folded hands and a loudspeaker that promises to elect those who welcomed Ram.
In the high-pitched battle of Chhindwara where senior Congress leader and former Chief Minister Kamal Nath바카라s son Nakul Nath is fighting for his second stint, Ram denies to leave the field. As one walks through the popular Shivaji chowk in a breezy evening, the lights, sounds and evocation of 바카라Ram바카라s naam바카라 from a makeshift stage gives a sense of festivity.
The saffron festoons, Jai Shree Ram flags and banners celebrating Navaratri may be mistaken for a BJP campaign. But a few metres away, the king-size poster of Kamal Nath with Ram in bows and arrows clear the clouds of confusion. The poster reads- 바카라Heartiest greetings of Ramnavami, Chait Navaratri, Baishakhi, Gudi Padwa and Hanuman Janmotsab to my religious brothers and sister- Kamal Nath바카라. Though Eid was just around the corner, the poster conspicuously forgot to mention it.
바카라This time, the BJP might claim the credits for Ram Mandir across India, but in Chhindwara, they would have to talk about something else as we are all 바카라Ram Bhakts바카라,바카라 says a senior district-level Congress leader who has been an aide of Nath for decades. These words are almost echoed by Nakul Nath around 80 km away from the city. Addressing a small rally of around 250 people at Sikheda village in Sausar, Nath-scion says, 바카라If they say that they have made the Ram Mandir, tell them that every brick of it is bought from our donations. Don바카라t let them take the credit of what they haven바카라t done.바카라
The mood of Ram Mandir could be sensed even in the faraway village of Sagoniya. Around 100 km away from the city- on the other side of the hilly terrains of lower western ghats, the Adivasi-Dalit dominated village is adorned not only with the saffron flags of Jai Shree Ram but also has a Ram Mandir. 바카라We don바카라t know when the Ram Mandir was built here. But we know that it has been there since forever,바카라 says Prembhan, the sarpanch of the village. Talking about the connection of the village to Ram, another villager adds, 바카라He is our pehchan, our identity.바카라
Sitting at his small courtyard besides the sacks of wheat that they have recently reaped and are about to sell in private market as the government wouldn바카라t give them the promised minimum support price due to its 바카라bad quality바카라- Ayodhya Prasad Dahariya, in his 80s, says, 바카라I collected donation from this village for Ram Mandir. We paid Rs 100, 200, 500- whatever we could.바카라
However, their eternal connection to Ram Mandir if makes one think that they are BJP supporters, Dahariya clears the confusion. 바카라We have been supporting Congress for more than four decades. I joined the party in 1968 and used to go for canvassing to the interior villages where no leader could ever reach.바카라
Chhindwara seat is considered to be Congress바카라s bastion where Kamal Nath has never lost the election in last 45 years barring 1997. 바카라We are all followers of Kamal Nath. He has done so much for us. He paid my hospital bills amounting to Rs 6 lakh when I had a major accident,바카라 says Ravinder Dahariya, a villager in his early 20s.
Such inclination towards Nath, however, doesn바카라t take away his love for Ram or Ram Mandir, rather it intensifies his faith in Hindu religion and its gurus. As a follower of Bageshwar Baba- the controversial Hindu priest whom Kamal Nath invited to Chhindwara just before the assembly elections last year- he says, 바카라Since I joined Baba Bageshwar바카라s Dham, I left non-vegetarian foods and liquor. Now I feel much better as he taught us the ways of life.바카라 Without any hesitation, he continues, 바카라Have you seen the Muslim-dominated area of Amarwada? It seems like 바카라mini-Pakistan바카라. As in Pakistan wherever you go, you would find Muslims, this place is just like that,바카라 he adds while tearing a packet of countryside ghutka- the only addiction he has held on to since he came in touch with 바카라Bageshwar Baba바카라.
While Nath has always been very assertive about his religious identity, it became evident during the last assembly elections when during an interview he proudly said that it was none other than Rajiv Gandhi who made Ram Mandir a reality by opening its gate and ending the status quo. 바카라He is a known Hanuman Bhakt,바카라 says the Chief Priest of the Hanuman Mandir that Nath built up in 2015. However, the senior Congress leader always maintained that it is a matter of his personal faith and has nothing to do with his politics.
Back in Chhindwara, the rally of BJP president J P Nadda as covers the air with the slogans of 바카라Jai Shree Ram바카라 in presence of the CM Mohan Yadav, it doesn바카라t seem to be a merely religious slogan - it sets the party바카라s electoral agenda. Coming from Ubegaon, 25 km away from the city, a BJP supporter Subimal Sahu says, 바카라On January 22, we celebrated the consecration ceremony like anything. It was our moment of victory, joy and celebration.바카라
Against this backdrop, where Ram is everywhere and the opposition camp is not shying away from claiming him, Ravinder laments, 바카라Politics should not be mixed with faith. Ram is our faith and Kamal Nath is our politics.바카라 Again, the slogan strikes the crowd 바카라 바카라Jai Shree Ram바카라.
