Racism, Indian Style

Racism, Indian Style

With the collapse of the Vajpayee government, the niggling fear that we've had for so long has finally come true. The very real prospect of Sonia Gandhi becoming the Prime Minister of India. And the thought of an Italian being ruler of India's billion people horrifies most of us. According to some newspaper reports, the BJP has already coined a slogan against Sonia "Abhi karega Rome raaj, Phir aayega Ram rajya" (now Rome shall rule, then will return Ram Rajya [BJP]). Further, former PM Chandra Shekhar said a "foreigner" must not be PM. (Sonia and Shekhar subsequently had a 45-minute meeting, to once again prove that in the power game, consistency between words and action is not a virtue).
Yes, it seems only natural that we recoil at the thought of having a "foreigner" rule the country. But is this revulsion justified? For a start, Sonia has lived in India for most of her adult life.