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BJP’s true purpose is to serve people not appoint friends: Indian-American oncologist Bharat Barai
The prominent doctor was speaking at an event organized by the Overseas Friends of BJP USA.
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Dr Bharat Barai at an OFBJP event. / Courtesy Photo
Indian-American Dr Bharat Barai highlighted the Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) foundational principles saying that its true purpose is to serve people, not appoint friends.
“One of the important things is to know that BJP, the founding fathers, thought it as a party to serve the people. It is for ‘seva’ to Bharat Mata, not to appoint your friends as your ministers in the position of this chairman and that chairman, not to appoint your relatives so that they get money from this corporation or that corporation, or allow corruption to go on,” Dr Barai said, taking a dig at dynasty politics.
He was speaking at an event organized by the Overseas Friends of BJP in the US.
Speaking at the event, Dr Barai stated that the BJP should take action to support the scheduled castes, scheduled tribes, and other backward castes (OBCs) to effect positive change and maintain power. This approach, he said, is vital for fostering unity among Hindus and addressing societal fractures.
Time to introspect after general elections
Barai emphasized the importance of soul searching, questioning why the BJP-led NDA secured only 292 seats instead of 400 and why the BJP itself only garnered around 240 seats, despite having an absolute majority previously. “We should migrate from congratulations to self-sacrifice. Soul searching will help us understand what we should do next time,” he said.
Barai questioned why a favorable outcome did not occur in Uttar Pradesh, especially given the positive perception of Adityanath's governance. He argued that the slogan "ab ki baar 400 paar" might have been counterproductive. “This slogan of ‘ab ki baar 400 paar’, I think it did a disservice,” he said.
This led people to believe that their votes were unnecessary, causing many to stay home instead of voting in the heat. Consequently, many felt their votes would not make a difference and chose not to stand in line to cast them, Barai said.
On corruption and secularism
Barai acknowledged the presence of corruption, albeit not at the higher levels of government. He emphasized that while leaders like Narendra Modi and most cabinet ministers remain untainted, allegations still persist. “BJP is a different party where the power is meant to serve the people,” he said.
Barai also pointed out India's 5,000-year-old civilization and its history of 800 years of subjugation, including 600 years under Muslim rulers and 200 years under the British. “So what do we do to try to bring our people up? Many times, people bring up the issue of reservations. Ideally, yes, we would like to have everything done on the merits. But remember, democracy is a game of numbers,” Barai emphasized.
Barai also addressed the misconception surrounding secularism in India, stating that secularism and socialism were not originally part of India's Constitution. “They were not part of India's constitution. They had deliberately kept it out. But what happened during the Emergency, Indira Gandhi introduced it as an amendment to the preamble. It's still not part of the constitution itself,” he said. “It's part of the preamble that India is a secular socialist republic. So if anybody has, and I hope someday somebody has the courage to remove it,” he added.
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