Jaipur's shame: Ashok Gehlot

If there is one clear loser in L’affaire Rushdie, it is probably Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot. The Jaipur Literature Festival (JLF) was his show. It would have served to enhance Jaipur’s global reputation beyond being home to the Hawa Mahal. Now, the world knows it has a government that bends with every passing ill-wind, with every hawa ka jhonka. Jaipur is called the Pink City. But Gehlot’s failure to do his duty—give protection to a guest at the JLF—has put the city to shame. The colour it will now be associated with is Lily – as in Lily-livered and cowardly. [caption id=“attachment_192787” align=“alignleft” width=“380” caption=“Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot. Image courtesy PIB”]  [/caption] Rushdie’s event at the JLF was never about The Satanic Verses, the book India banned in 1988. A small cabal of bigots decided to make it so, and Gehlot’s government turned to jelly. A state associated with the brave Rajputs of yore turned tail and sank into the sands. Gehlot’s crime is not merely cowardice, but also aiding and abetting terror by cowering before it. First, his government claimed that there was a credible threat from assassins. Salman Rushdie was told about it with the hope of scaring him away. And he stayed away. A state that gets cowed by extremists and frightens its guests using the same bogus fears is essentially working on their behalf. Next, when the organisers of the JLF tried to get Rushdie on the video link on Tuesday, the same fear-mongering techniques were used. The police first claimed the right to deny permission for a video conference. The state home secretary later said—once the video was cancelled—that Rushdie’s conference was given clearance subject to the condition that he made no reference to The Satanic Verses. The police, meanwhile, told the organisers that many people were opposed to the Rushdie video call. The organisers were also told that some of the protesters were already inside the venue – thus making the threat even more real. The state police chief then had the effrontery to claim in front of TV cameras that they were willing to provide security. Inexplicably, they also thanked the organisers for saving them the headache by cancelling the event. All this reeks of a charade enacted only to get the event scratched. Gehlot should tell his police chief that the best way to offer security is not to frighten his guests. From the beginning, it was clear that the issue was never about reading from the banned book or about The Satanic Verses. It was always about giving a person of Indian origin the right to attend the JLF. It was the politicians who made it Muslims versus blasphemy. It was the duty of Ashok Gehlot to ensure that one of this country’s famous (or even infamous) sons could turn up at the Jaipur Festival and contribute his share to its fame. By turning chicken, Gehlot blotted the valiant copybook of Jaipur. The government at the Centre—which too is run by the Congress—cannot wash its hands off the affair. The city stands diminished by a politician whose only concern was his votebank – and not the upholding of the rule of law. In the eyeball-to-eyeball with the mob, he blinked. The next time Jaipur holds its festival, it will not be able to hold its head high. Ashok Gehlot should take the blame for it. But that may be too much to expect from a man who ran away from trouble after inviting it.