When it comes to discussing trends like this, we need some labels or short descriptions for those exhibiting similar traits, expressing converging views, singing consonant tunes, or dancing to the same beats. They fall into the trend of cleverly equating BJP and Congress with all sorts of whatabouteries used by the sanghis, avoiding discussions on countering the sanghi threat, deliberately underplaying the sanghi-fascist threat and contemptuously belittling any possibilities of any wide united struggles or platforms against communal-fascists.
Given the pernicious influence of the Prakash Karat's theories and the activities of his faction in the CPI(M), I think it is apt to label all these trends by the label Karatified-Left from now on. Otherwise, we have to describe them repeatedly by their general characteristics and their obsession with sabotaging any anti-sanghi fascist unity. I believe a wider unity, however flawed or temporary it may be, is indeed necessary in the present circumstances. Somehow, the Karatified Left seems hell-bent on proving that all talk of unity is absurd and the threat of fascism is exaggerated to provide a cover for the comeback of the Congress. Of course, we do not use the term fascism in the same way as commissar Prakash Karat.
For many of us, fascism is more of a descriptive term employed in the manner of Umberto Eco and Robert Paxton. The question of fascism, the sangh parivar’s majoritarian onslaught on the Indian democracy and the hollowness of Prakash Karat’s postures have been discussed in several articles. Among them, one that needs to be highlighted is “India: Liberal Democracy and the Extreme Right” by Prof Aijaz Ahmad in which he argued that "what we have to grasp about every successful movement of the fascist type is not its replication of something else in the past, but its originality in response to the conditions in which it arises."
We use the term fascism to bundle together the numerous threads of the majoritarian authoritarian ideology that is consolidating into a dangerous political force, which can subvert the constitution. In other words, the term sanghi-fascist used in these conversations represents an assorted assemblage of individuals and organisations. They range from the highly secretive santan sanstha involved in several terrorist acts, the RSS, several toxic monasteries promoted by those like the Yogi Adiytanath to many sleeper units of the sangh parivar that often operate as welfare organisations.
The Karatified-Leftists regurgitate the same whataboutries, particularly on the social media. Of course, one keeps hearing that they use the same arguments in their inner party group fights in which, as Aditya Nigam points out the questions about fascism, sangh parivar and Congress have been reduced to a ludicrous ‘non debate’, where one faction uses the fascist threat as a cover to cobble together an opportunist alliance with the Congress rather than geniunely combating the sanghi fascist threat. It is quite evident now that the Karatised Leftists are operating with a certain sense of urgency on the social media to run a virulent anti-Congress campaign and to sabotage discussions on promoting wide unity against the sanghi-fascists. They are also making a desperate effort to discredit all those (within and outside the left) arguing for wider unity against the sanghi fascists.
The Karatised-Left did not protest when Prakash Karat had reduced the CPI(M) into a B-team of the BJP and played second fiddle to the games of the sangh parivar. As Aditya Nigam says dismissively, “Karat can only say anything worth anything on issues that demand neither an understanding of Indian society nor of politics ...” The Karatified-Left including some friends should be arguing their case on their own pages. Their intrusion into conversations with the aim of diverting the discussions is not welcome. That behaviour is not different from that the sanghi trolls who come up with all sort of whataboutery arguments. A discussion is possible if they recognize the fascist threat and agree on the need for fighting that. They are welcome to offer alternative propositions. If not, they should keep away from conversations in which they have no place as friends, so long as they remain under the fuzzy category of ‘social media friends’. Despite differences of opinions, let me remind my Karatified friends what I had written in a debate on Kafila-online: “Fascism can attain power through the ballot. Knowing that, it is necessary to adopt a war-like approach in fighting these forces electorally.”
The Karatified-Leftists should understand that it is a lot easier for many of us to confront the real sanghis than the Leftists who brandish arguments borrowed from the tongues of the sanghis. It is embarrassing for us to treat as friends those who claim not to be with the Far Right but employ nearly the same lexicon and argumentation as them. Therefore, we will treat such pestilence according to what it represents objectively in the present circumstances and the role it plays in effect. We need to treat such a scourge for what it effectively is and not what it claims to be.
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