Pankaj Mishra's Idea of Hindu Nationalism

Pankaj Mishra's hysterical diatribe in the NYT , Modi's Idea of India (Oct 24, 2014) is typical of one-side propaganda that my book aims to counter. Bereft of sound logic to counter Hindu Nationalists, intellectuals like Mishra resort to exaggerating minutiae, quoting instances out of context and projecting fringe elements as prototypes to put forward their view.
Below is an excerpt from Mishra's op-ed and an excerpt from the book Lies,lies and More Lies (second ed pub Oct 16, 2014) which is inadvertently a lucid analysis of the thought process of people like Pankaj Mishra.
Pankaj Mishra writes: " A Harvard-trained economist called Subramanian Swamy recently demanded a public bonfire of canonical books by Indian historians —..........."
Excerpt from Lies,lies and More Lies: "The Hindutva movement comprises a wide spectrum. At the
periphery are people who hold extreme views, and detractors have made every attempt to promote these extremists as representative of this philosophy. Such attempts are not only fraudulent, but dishonest for these extremists are not true representatives of the core philosophy and do not reflect the majority view.
Amartya Sen, the Nobel Laureate (no fan of Hindutva) concedes
this point in The Argumentative Indian (p.53): " . . . while the hard core of “Hindutva” advocates is
relatively small, around them cluster a very much larger group, whom I will call “proto-Hindutva” enthusiasts. They are typically less zealous than the Hindutva champions and are opposed to violence in general (and are typically put off by it) . . . .

New Second Edition

Title: Lies, Lies and More Lies. The Campaign to Defame Hindu Nationalism (2nd ed)
Author: Vivek
Publisher: iUniverse
Pages: 252
ISBN: 978-1-4917-3835-1 (pbk)
           978-1-4917-3836-8 (hard cover)
Published: Oct 16, 2014

Available from Baker and Taylor, Ingrams abd Alibris

Kindle Ed USA 3.99 In Rs 177 India

Review Current Edition

SPR Review Dec 19, 2014

In Lies, Lies and More Lies, author Vivek sets out to prove that Hindutva is an ideology that doesn’t equate to Hindu fundamentalism. He states in the preface that he is frequently asked: “Does a billion-strong community really need protection?” He says yes they do, and his essays demonstrate why the author believes Hindus need protection, and how Hindutva “remains the sole bulwark against the spreading Islamic fundamentalism in South Asia.” Furthermore, according to the author, the English-language media has an agenda to vilify Hindutva.
This work, which is the second edition, consists of essays published by Vivek addressing the issues mentioned above. The title Lies, Lies and More Lies: The Campaign to Defame Hindu/Indian Nationalism sets the tone for the work. The author’s purpose is to highlight these lies and he does not shy away stating his beliefs emphatically. He’s informative, passionate, and confrontational.
Each essay is well written and all of them are revealing. Vivek relies heavily on statistics and quotes in support of his ideas. For those unfamiliar with the issues, this work introduces the complexity of the problems. At times the information can be overwhelming, but given the subject matter, the author takes great pains to be as succinct as possible. Many of the issues are centuries in the making and they involve millions of people over the years.
Any work tackling thorny subjects such as history, politics, and nationalism has to tread a fine line. Facts need to back up opinions, and the author should be as unbiased as possible. Otherwise the work is in danger of being labeled propaganda. His insights, research, and passion are impressive.
This work raises questions, provides some answers, and hopefully leads people to look further into the history of India and its people. The problems won’t be solved with one book, but Vivek’s work will hopefully foster dialogue, resulting in a better understanding of the issues involved.

Reviews From Previous Edition

‘A brilliant book’ 

Seth J. Frantzman, Amazon Hall of Fame Reviewer.

‘A passionate and thoughtful call for perspective on hot-button Indian social issues’

 Midwest Book Review

Synopsis

The resounding electoral victory of Narendra Modi and the BJP in the Indian elections of 2014 makes it all the more imperative for the Western world in general and academics to get a true picture of what Hindu Nationalism stands for.The second edition of  Lies, lies and More Lies. The Campaign to Defame Hindu/Indian Nationalism  (pp 252. Publisher. iUniverse. 2014)does this in an objective manner.

The last decade has seen the publication of a plethora of books like Christophe Jaffrelot’s, The Hindu Nationalist Movement in India, Thomas Hansen’s The Saffron Wave and  Martha Nussbaum’s The Clash Within that have been highly critical of the Hindu Nationalist Movement in India. This genre of books has been a one-sided, prejudged narration that has failed look at the movement from the Hindu perspective or even accord Hindu Nationalism a fair and scholarly treatment. At times these books have highlighted dubious incidents to put forth their point of view or held up radical fringe elements as representative of Hindu Nationalism.

Lies, Lies and More Lies presents the other side of the story in a balanced manner with tangible proof backed by sound references that puts paid to many of the false innuendoes against Hindu Nationalism that have been bandied around for years. This second edition of Lies, Lies and More Lies (first edition was published in 2007) contains 2 new sections (Gujarat-the exoneration of PM Narendra Modi and Babri-Masjid-Mandir Controversy), 10 new chapters and 100 more pages. It provides more evidence of the lies that have been spread about Hindu Nationalism.

Especially revealing is the content of these two new sections. In a chapter titled, “Intellectuals or Charlatans’ which deals with the Ayodhya verdict, there is a detailed description of the judge’s rebuke directed to the detractors of Hindu Nationalism for their unethical and unprofessional attempts to influence the outcome. The same unethical conduct is evident in the SIT investigation of the Gujarat riots that ultimately exonerated Pm Narendra Modi; the SIT report speaks of doctoring of evidence and even goes so far as to dub a witness as “highly suspicious and undesirable”.

 This book is a must read for all who wish to get a better understanding of Hindu Nationalism. It is recommended for local academics, political leaders, businessmen, and others who wish to interact with India and Indians for it enables them to understand the Hindu/Indian psyche better.

Available on Amazon.com: http://www.amazon.com/Lies-More-Campaign-Nationalism-Edition/dp/1491738359/ref=dp_ob_title_bk