ujjwal kr. SPeAKS

Today came another blow to an already flaring, tense economic standoff between India and the United States since Trump’s encumbering trade tariff of 25% was imposed on Indian imports, apparently as a punishment for India’s purchase of Russian crude oil and it’s long-standing relationship with the Russian state. With the imposition of another 25%, the effective embargo now stands at 50%. Though this op-ed-style write-up is not meant for delving into the merits of this subject. Rather it is an attempt towards exploring behavioural predicaments of certain sections of India’s right and its subsequent failure in grasping a determinate understanding of the matter. Throughout social media, I am amused to see folks who form India’s supposed right-wing, political consultants, and IT Cell experts working for the BJP who just a few months back were celebrating Donald Trump and through him the perceived global right’s victory in US Presidential Elections are now dumbfounded at this tariff fiasco. I suppose they gave in to the popular perception of so-called right-wing politics winning over woke stuff because of their pea-sized brains’ understanding of how things work in realpolitik. There’s a reason one should refrain from commenting on something they clearly don’t know or have read anything about. We don’t have to become a Duggal Sahab on every subject matter! To think that these are the people working with the party or government is what I would refer to as ideological mediocrity getting paid at the expense of thinkers. At the risk of sounding preachy, even with my limited reading and understanding of IR over the years, I had developed that first principle core within me which was overwhelmingly suggesting that someone like Trump shouldn’t hold public office in any form, let alone become the leader of the collective West.
The root to the referred misconceived understanding is that today young people across ideological lines (more so within the Indian Right) don’t like to read or research about anything at all. Their opinions are swept away by what’s trending or abuzz on social media. So if Trump or Republicans are showing any detestation towards the LGBTQ community, then the supposed right thing to do for India’s so-called right would be to mimic them. If the West advocates for Israel, then despite India’s decades-old official stand for a two-state solution,India’s right would swallow up that idea (backed by some form of abhorrence for Islamists) and without a thought parrot the “Global right.” Someone should tell them that no such thing as a “Global right” exists, and our IR policy considerations should not and fortunately are not informed by such lofty ideas . People in the MEA and their predecessors have known this all along . Hence, I am not worried about the government’s response, whether it’s muted or aggravating . In my opinion, while holding our fort, we should wait this one out with Trump until the US midterms for a clearer picture. It should be duly highlighted though that the three-decade-long road traveled by India from scepticism to trust with regard to its relations with the United States has been done away with for a considerable time to come, as the US might be transactional in its dealings, but the Indian governance system has a long institutional memory to let go of anything like this. With that being said, there’s a lot that we need to sort out if we have further plans of contesting for a seat at the table right there with Uncle Sam and the Middle Kingdom . So, when we project ourselves as Vishwa-bandhu of today and Vishwa-Guru of tomorrow, we have to actually mean that stuff. Frankly, in my opinion, we are not doing enough in that regard, and many like me who study these things expect a lot more work in this area, and rightly so, as the current government and its leader are the only ones in our political spectrum capable enough to take us or help us realise that breakthrough as a nation. The least we as citizens of a potential major power could do is bring some originality to our thoughts worthy of admiration for our glorious past and heritage. Who knows, we might get to that self-fulfilling prophecy of becoming a Vishwa-Guru one day ! Until then, young folks, let’s work our ass off towards contributing to our share of national service through whatever professional paths we have chosen to walk upon.

THANK YOU FOR YOUR ATTENTION TO THIS MATTER !