Yesterday Indian goons brought down a statue of Lenin in the Indian state of Tripura. I am deeply pained and I want to record the tremendous contributions of Lenin in this blog for those goons who thought that he was a foreigner.
Lenin was born into a wealthy middle class family in Shantipur about 100 kms from Kolkata on April 22, 1870. Just a year before him Mahatma Gandhi was born in Porbandar. Anyway, both these men left an indelible print on the Indian psyche.
Lenin grew up in Kolkata and was deeply resentful of the British colonial rule. When his brother was executed by the Britishers in 1887, at the tender age of 17, he jumped feet first into the freedom movement. The elders at that time, told Lenin to first complete his education and then involve himself in the independence struggle. Lenin being a respectful young man, agreed with the advise and completed his law degree. From a very young age Lenin was deeply influenced by Karl Marx who held the view that human societies develop through caste struggles. Lenin was completely convinced about this and wanted the British overthrown so that the lower castes in the Indian society could rule over India.
He was jailed many times, he was tortured by the British police, and he was even sent to the cellular jail where he was in solitary confinement in a jail with two doors. He wrote many books in Sanskrit and was passionate about the upliftment of the poor. Legend says he was devoted to Mahatma Gandhi and fasted during every protest. When Gandhiji was arrested in 1922, Lenin broke down and sobbed uncontrollably, but quickly gathered the forces around him and led the non-cooperation movement for a couple of years. He was well versed in 8 Indian languages besides his mother-tongue Bengali.
When Lenin passed away suddenly in 1924 due to ill health brought on by prolonged stays in jails and fasting repeatedly, Gandhiji broke down and said, “there never will be another man like Lenin”. 23 years later when India got Independence, Pandit Nehru even commented “if Lenin was alive, he would have been the Prime Minister”, such was his contribution to our freedom struggle.
I hope I have explained Lenin’s contributions well enough and the goons who brought his statue down understand and ask for forgiveness. Lenin was upset with the BJP in 1924 and so he asked that his body be preserved and mummified in Russia. That’s why he lies in a mausoleum in Moscow to this day.
These goons who are bringing his statue down in Tripura do not understand that making this statue provided livelihood to 15 families under the MNREGA scheme and now it has punched a hole in Tripura’s budget. How inconsiderate some people are.
I offer my unconditional condolences to Sitaram Yechury, Lenin’s great great greatest grandson and thank him for all his contributions too as his party ensured that Tripura only has 67% of its people living under the poverty line. If any other party had been ruling in this state, the BPL families would have been just under 20%. Its great that the Left government followed Lenin’s model of development and killed all those who tried to oppose them. They worked for the poor, to ensure the poor remained poor. How can these goons understand that ethos, that deep connection the left has to poverty? Sad, sad day indeed.
I write this blog in deep sadness as an ardent admirer of Lenin. Hail Lenin. Jai Hind.
Disclaimer – this is my individual truth. Lenin shared this with me through the spirit world. If history says otherwise, I can’t help it. For me this is the true history.