The Link between Leftism and Hindu Phobia

The term "Left" in politics dates back to the 1790s when, during the French Revolution, socialist representatives sat to the presiding officer's left in the revolutionary parliament. These individuals represented the Leftist ideology, advocating for the interests of the working class and opposing the elites, wealthy, and aristocracy. They leaned towards socialism, with the more radical Leftists favouring communism. On the other hand, those seated to the right of the presiding officer, the nobles or aristocrats, came to represent the right-wing ideology, which upheld authority, tradition, and capitalism with minimal government intervention.

In 1992, I first stepped into Jawaharlal Nehru University to visit a cousin who had enrolled in a French degree program. At 17, I was all for rejecting aristocracy and tradition, standing firmly with the working class. Though I never equated my stance with communism or socialism, I didn't fully understand the connection between economic models and political ideologies at that time.

What was extremely refreshing about the campus atmosphere was the environment where elite professors and academicians mingled freely with students from poor and backward areas of India, creating a space without class divides. It was my first experience in India where a person wasn't judged based on their family background, wealth, or social status. Everyone was treated as an equal and given a chance at higher education, including the opportunity to prepare for careers in bureaucracy and other government services, which were the most popular choices for JNU students in those days.

While pursuing my engineering degree at Punjab Engineering College Chandigarh, I frequently visited JNU over the years and eventually lived there while working for companies like HCL and GE until 2012. However, I discovered many contradictions to the initial impression of JNU being a place that treats people of all backgrounds equally. The façade of equality had a carefully and craftily woven bias that was pre-set. From caste and economic background to connections in bureaucracy and politics, and to those who could enable scholarships or grants for foreign tours, the deceit was slyly disguised as a philosophy of egalitarianism.

The PHD students chasing the professors for approvals, touching feet to buying groceries and being the personal unpaid research assistants was considered perfectly legit. Ironically the same professors never batted an eyelid sharing how much their child is getting paid being a research assistant for his PHD in Oxford, Berkley or Howard. Their child deserves to be paid and while they sit and advocate socialism and communism for their own children they chose the fruits of capitalism. Almost every professor would be traveling twice a year to the U.S., Europe or U.K. to give lectures, attend seminars or visit their kids. 

I have longed believed in the saying that never go by what a person says go by what they do. So clearly applying this adage to the JNU academicians most of them were extremely hypocritical. While lauding Marx, Lenin, CPI & CPM and aligning to Congress to secure grants and VC positions they were making the most of socialism at home and capitalism abroad.