Editorial Viewpoint
Many Parsis Modi-fied
What does the formation of a Narendra Modi led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government hold for the minorities? For most, trepidation, but for the Parsis, many of whom voted for the saffron alliance, goodwill. Both Modi and the late Shiv Sena (SS) founder leader Bal Thackeray have always spoken highly of the community and their fondness for the eccentric, but well-meaning Parsis. And neither of them was or is generally known for their love of minorities.
With Parsis numbering around 60,000 nationally and mainly featuring in the middle and well-to-do classes, no political party need fear any undue demands being made or civil disobedience on their part. The community is law abiding to a fault and even where reservations are sought and granted, they are often unavailed of. The Bombay Parsi Punchayet used to lament that after managing to convince educational institutions to reserve seats for Parsis, community members refused the offer claiming the places were too far away or lacking in amenities available in the larger cities.
Parsis usually do not avail of the numerous government schemes reserved for minorities because they are unaware of them, or do not qualify for the income criteria specified or because they are apathetic. The Jiyo Parsi scheme launched by the Government of India at the initiative of the Delhi based Parzor Foundation to assist couples to conceive has had takers however, and a few successes, according to a report in the Hindustan Times of May 14, 2014.
People connected with various trusts occasionally complain that those sanctioned funds do not even bother to come and collect the amount, especially if the figure is low. One trustee observed mobeds, despite having mediclaim coverage, approach the trust for medical assistance. When asked why, they replied that filing a claim with the insurance company entailed too much paperwork!
When Modi addressed the community in Udvada in April 2011 he came prepared in anticipation of a request for funds or favors. To his surprise, no monetary assistance was asked for! "You have given everything, asked for nothing — not even an electoral ticket,” observed Modi whilst giving the community a verbal treat: "I wonder what would have happened if the Parsis had not arrived in Gujarat, what would have happened to us? We would not have known humor or how to weather troubles with a smiling face. You are a heritage of Gujarat. I have come to acknowledge that…
"You have made it out that I have honored you by coming here. But I have come with my own agenda. I want the blessings of Iranshah. I want three things from the sacred fire. I want the gifts of humata, hukhta, huvarashta — to think good thoughts, speak good words, do good deeds with mind, heart and spirit — so that I may not make mistakes and not do harm to anyone… Each one of us is like a single grain of sugar. Do not underestimate your potential to continue to sweeten this country.”
What was Modi’s attraction for the Parsis even though his implicit or complicit involvement in the 2002 Gujarat riots and the subsequent staged "encounter” killings made him an international pariah with the US government denying him a visa to enter the country? It’s well known that many Parsis have little love for Muslims, justifying their dislike on account of the conquest of Iran by the Arabs and other Islamic forces.
At a Federation of the Parsi Zoroastrian Anjumans of India evening function in Ahmedabad in 2004, the late Ashok Bhatt, a minister in the Modi government during and after the 2002 pogrom, received copious praise from one of the Parsi speakers. When a prominent local Parsi resident was asked about the encomiums showered on the minister, she replied that whereas in the past riots continued unabated, this time they were cut short with a firm hand.
What drove so many Parsis to vote for the SS/BJP (Bharatiya Janata Party) combine? The community has an aversion to the SS largely on account of its history of resorting to extra constitutional methods including violence to achieve its objectives. Years ago when SS leader and former Maharashtra chief minister Manohar Joshi addressed the Jamshedi Navroz gathering at the Dadar Parsi Gymkhana grounds asking for support, he conceded that the community would mostly vote for the Congress. Aware of the antipathy toward some of his political allies, Modi cleverly instructed the electorate to vote for them anyway as a vote for them was tantamount to a vote for him.
But more than Modi’s resoluteness, the failings of the Congress drove people to the NDA. Corruption was rampant as it always has been but with the strengthening of democratic institutions, social media and a vigilant Press, the excesses were well publicized. That, coupled with rising prices, affected nearly everyone. Inflation has many causes, bad governance and corruption being chief among them. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh came across as weak and ineffectual. People began to believe what the country needed was a strong leader.
Not since the days of Prime Minister Indira Gandhi had one seen such a person. She, like Modi, was determined, brooked no opposition and had few scruples about weakening or destroying democratic institutions or conventions if they came in her way. In contrast to the cobbled "khichdi” coalition of the Janata Party, she shone as a beacon of stability and decisiveness. Even during the days of her infamous Emergency many Parsis admired her firmness in curbing the excesses, oblivious to the fact that the genesis of many of the problems lay in her socialistic, license-raj policies. For the Parsis, her marriage to Feroze Gandhi cemented her ties to the community. She became "aapri (our) Indira.” She attended family functions in Bombay clad in a gara. She asked the community to speak with one voice when disparate views were uttered regarding the ill-fated Adoption Bill. The Gandhi family graced functions at the Delhi Parsi Anjuman.
Her children, Rajiv and Sanjay, and her grandchildren, Rahul, Priyanka and Feroze Varun are all Parsis though not Zoroastrians. The Parsi connection however should have been enough to win the community’s hearts and minds in this election as in so many before. But that was not to be. Even thinking Parsis supported the Modi bandwagon.
Modi has both the relative prosperity of Gujarat coupled with disillusionment with the Congress going in his favor. If he leaves aside his communal leanings and concentrates on economic development, equitable distribution of resources, social justice and honest governance, he may return to office again and again as he has in Gujarat. But if he wavers from the straight and narrow, he will find the Parsis, like the rest of India, turning against him.
With Parsis numbering around 60,000 nationally and mainly featuring in the middle and well-to-do classes, no political party need fear any undue demands being made or civil disobedience on their part. The community is law abiding to a fault and even where reservations are sought and granted, they are often unavailed of. The Bombay Parsi Punchayet used to lament that after managing to convince educational institutions to reserve seats for Parsis, community members refused the offer claiming the places were too far away or lacking in amenities available in the larger cities.
Parsis usually do not avail of the numerous government schemes reserved for minorities because they are unaware of them, or do not qualify for the income criteria specified or because they are apathetic. The Jiyo Parsi scheme launched by the Government of India at the initiative of the Delhi based Parzor Foundation to assist couples to conceive has had takers however, and a few successes, according to a report in the Hindustan Times of May 14, 2014.
People connected with various trusts occasionally complain that those sanctioned funds do not even bother to come and collect the amount, especially if the figure is low. One trustee observed mobeds, despite having mediclaim coverage, approach the trust for medical assistance. When asked why, they replied that filing a claim with the insurance company entailed too much paperwork!
When Modi addressed the community in Udvada in April 2011 he came prepared in anticipation of a request for funds or favors. To his surprise, no monetary assistance was asked for! "You have given everything, asked for nothing — not even an electoral ticket,” observed Modi whilst giving the community a verbal treat: "I wonder what would have happened if the Parsis had not arrived in Gujarat, what would have happened to us? We would not have known humor or how to weather troubles with a smiling face. You are a heritage of Gujarat. I have come to acknowledge that…
"You have made it out that I have honored you by coming here. But I have come with my own agenda. I want the blessings of Iranshah. I want three things from the sacred fire. I want the gifts of humata, hukhta, huvarashta — to think good thoughts, speak good words, do good deeds with mind, heart and spirit — so that I may not make mistakes and not do harm to anyone… Each one of us is like a single grain of sugar. Do not underestimate your potential to continue to sweeten this country.”
What was Modi’s attraction for the Parsis even though his implicit or complicit involvement in the 2002 Gujarat riots and the subsequent staged "encounter” killings made him an international pariah with the US government denying him a visa to enter the country? It’s well known that many Parsis have little love for Muslims, justifying their dislike on account of the conquest of Iran by the Arabs and other Islamic forces.
At a Federation of the Parsi Zoroastrian Anjumans of India evening function in Ahmedabad in 2004, the late Ashok Bhatt, a minister in the Modi government during and after the 2002 pogrom, received copious praise from one of the Parsi speakers. When a prominent local Parsi resident was asked about the encomiums showered on the minister, she replied that whereas in the past riots continued unabated, this time they were cut short with a firm hand.
What drove so many Parsis to vote for the SS/BJP (Bharatiya Janata Party) combine? The community has an aversion to the SS largely on account of its history of resorting to extra constitutional methods including violence to achieve its objectives. Years ago when SS leader and former Maharashtra chief minister Manohar Joshi addressed the Jamshedi Navroz gathering at the Dadar Parsi Gymkhana grounds asking for support, he conceded that the community would mostly vote for the Congress. Aware of the antipathy toward some of his political allies, Modi cleverly instructed the electorate to vote for them anyway as a vote for them was tantamount to a vote for him.
But more than Modi’s resoluteness, the failings of the Congress drove people to the NDA. Corruption was rampant as it always has been but with the strengthening of democratic institutions, social media and a vigilant Press, the excesses were well publicized. That, coupled with rising prices, affected nearly everyone. Inflation has many causes, bad governance and corruption being chief among them. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh came across as weak and ineffectual. People began to believe what the country needed was a strong leader.
Not since the days of Prime Minister Indira Gandhi had one seen such a person. She, like Modi, was determined, brooked no opposition and had few scruples about weakening or destroying democratic institutions or conventions if they came in her way. In contrast to the cobbled "khichdi” coalition of the Janata Party, she shone as a beacon of stability and decisiveness. Even during the days of her infamous Emergency many Parsis admired her firmness in curbing the excesses, oblivious to the fact that the genesis of many of the problems lay in her socialistic, license-raj policies. For the Parsis, her marriage to Feroze Gandhi cemented her ties to the community. She became "aapri (our) Indira.” She attended family functions in Bombay clad in a gara. She asked the community to speak with one voice when disparate views were uttered regarding the ill-fated Adoption Bill. The Gandhi family graced functions at the Delhi Parsi Anjuman.
Her children, Rajiv and Sanjay, and her grandchildren, Rahul, Priyanka and Feroze Varun are all Parsis though not Zoroastrians. The Parsi connection however should have been enough to win the community’s hearts and minds in this election as in so many before. But that was not to be. Even thinking Parsis supported the Modi bandwagon.
Modi has both the relative prosperity of Gujarat coupled with disillusionment with the Congress going in his favor. If he leaves aside his communal leanings and concentrates on economic development, equitable distribution of resources, social justice and honest governance, he may return to office again and again as he has in Gujarat. But if he wavers from the straight and narrow, he will find the Parsis, like the rest of India, turning against him.
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