Big B, Congress and its long-term memory loss!

I, like millions of others in this country, and probably the world, would love to know what has soured the relationship between the Gandhis and the Bachchans. Something really earth-shaking must have happened for best friends to become sworn enemies. Or was it just a silly misunderstanding that only became worse because of ego problems? The answer lies with the aggrieved parties and neither is willing to talk. So we should ideally leave it at that and expect the warring parties to try to sort things out or maintain a discreet silence.

Stop for a minute and think about what the implications are for the Bachchans if they were to take on the Gandhis –harassment through income-tax raids, police cases, boycotts and the below-the-belt-hits, of the kind they have been receiving recently. For them, maybe silence is the most viable option. But, what about India’s first family? It’s really for the Gandhis, with the entire government machinery behind them, to set the record straight. But it seems to suit them to keep the embers of the controversy burning and allow their sycophants (calling them spokespersons of the party, would be denigrating the post), to target the Bachchans and conduct this entire smear campaign.

Take the latest incident involving Abhishek and the removal of his video from the Earth Day event. Could the organisers have done that without a nudge from the powers-to-be, looking to ingratiate themselves to 10, Janpath? Frankly, it’s such petty-minded behaviour. Look at the way the government machinery swung into action when My Name is Khan was made a target by the Shiv Sena. Did personal equations play a role in ensuring that the film’s opening was not disturbed? Others, including the Bachchans, have had similar problems with political parties, how come the government didn’t do anything then?

Moreover, when queries like the one raised against Amitabh come from a party that looked the other way during the 1984 riots, it amounts to just sanctimonious yammering. How come they suffer memory loss when that comes up? I am no saffron-waving Hindu fanatic, but I think the Congress is adept at bending the rules when it comes to savings its skin. Remember Mr Clean in his squeaky voice telling all of us on national television in 1984, even as Sikhs were bring pulled out of their homes in Delhi and elsewhere and set on fire by Congress party goons, “Bhagat ji kehte hain, ki jab ek bada pedh girai, to dharti hilti hain.” Here was a prime minister actually justifying the massacre of innocents and calling it an aberration. Twenty-six years later, it took a shoe flung at the Home Minister, for the Congress to wake up from its slumber and realise that were in deeper shit than they thought.

The Bachchans, meanwhile have maintained a studied silence, and except for the occasional comment, have emerged smelling of roses. For a man who managed a career successfully for over 40 years, playing the aggrieved party mustn’t be too difficult for Amitabh. He should, actually, feel flattered that various politicians and parties have to use his name to garner some cheap publicity!