The word cliché is said to have come from the French word clic, which means ‘a clicking sound’ or more specifically, the sound made by 18th century print blocks that were repeatedly used to reproduce images or type. Over time, the word came to be associated with anything that was repetitive or overused.
Here are three cliches whose mindless use has done subtle but considerable damage in recent times.
‘All political parties are equally bad’
This usually surfaces in living rooms, workplaces, and social media debates when apologists for the current dispensation find themselves unable to defend irrefutable instances of corruption, crony capitalism, or blatant communalism.
That is when the sins of the Congress and other parties are usually brought up, with the above declaration.
In fact, all political parties are not equally bad. Some are much worse than others. And by not clearly and specifically calling out a specific party’s misdeeds, we exonerate them of their crimes.
While it is true that most political parties have not covered themselves in glory at various points in time, there is no denying that the BJP has probably done more damage to India’s secular fabric than any other party in living memory. Starting with the destruction of the Babri Masjid in 1992, the BJP’s and the Sangh Parivar’s attack on the idea of a secular and syncretic India has been systematic and relentless.
At no other point in the history of modern India have the country’s Muslims and even Christians felt as unsafe and unwelcome as they do today. And under the patronage of no other political party have India’s minorities seen the type of sustained mob lynchings and illegal demolitions as they are today.
Also, at no other point has an entire state been left to burn in a civil war as Manipur has.
‘Democracy takes too long’
Modi rose to power in 2014 on a wave of dissatisfaction with the UPA-2 government, which, we were told, was suffering from policy paralysis under the leadership of a Prime Minister who ostensibly had so little to say he had been unkindly nicknamed ‘Maun Mohan Singh.’ ‘Maun’ is Hindi for ‘mute’.
We were told that India was ready for a ‘strong’ political leader who would not be afraid to speak his mind and take bold decisions. We were told we needed an authoritarian leader to bring back black money stashed abroad, and stare China down.
Those who whined that ‘democratic processes take too long’ and longed for a strongman have certainly received their hearts’ desire over the last ten years. Their Hindu hriday samrat, seeing no need for consultation and consensus with anyone, (including members of his own cabinet) made swift, unilateral and profoundly bad decisions – demonetisation, and a hasty, non-thought-through COVID lockdown, to name just two. The former dealt a blow to the economy from which it still hasn’t recovered, and the latter resulted in the death and displacement of lakhs.
As far as bringing black money back into India goes, the exact opposite has happened with the government writing off Rs 16 lakh crore worth of bad debts to those perceived to be close to the ruling party. Youth unemployment has reached dangerous levels, and, far from putting China in its place, we have by all accounts lost patrolling access to hundreds of square kilometres of territory in Ladakh and Arunachal Pradesh.
The past 10 years have put paid to the mythical benefits of ‘the strong leader’ with his much-vaunted ‘brute majority’. Democracy takes time, yes, but nothing compared to the amount of time it will take to reverse the societal and economic effects of a high-handed authoritarian regime.
‘Let’s keep politics out of this’
For those who claim to be ‘apolitical’ and shun the discussion of politics, the German playwright Bertolt Brecht’s words come to mind:
“The worst illiterate is the political illiterate, he doesn’t hear, doesn’t speak, nor participates in political events. He doesn’t know that the cost of life, the price of the bean, of the fish, of the flour, of the rent, of the shoes and of the medicine, all depends on political decisions. The political illiterate is so stupid that he is proud and swells his chest saying that he hates politics.”
Those who come from economically and socially disadvantaged classes are often much more politically conscious than the middle and upper classes. This is probably because they understand just how closely their own survival is linked to the policies of the government in power.
Perhaps if our educational institutions had done a better job of teaching children the fundamentals of democracy from a young age, they would have grown up with a better understanding of the primary importance of politics in our lives and been much more actively engaged with it as they grew up.
There are other cliches also, that have made their presence felt over the last ten years…
‘Modi ji ne jo kiya, kuchh soch ke hee kiya hoga (Modi must have done what he has in accordance with a plan)’.
‘But if not Modi, who? There is no alternative.’
‘But where is the opposition?’
Many of these, however, have now lost their potency after the BJP fell short of the majority mark in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. Clearly, many no longer have the faith they once did in Modi’s ability to make wise decisions. Nor do they think that he is the only one capable of running the country.
Cliches are a cheap substitute for clear thinking and are just as dangerous as the false and hate-filled WhatsApp messages which have become such a ubiquitous part of our existence. We do well to actively resist and counter both.
Rohit Kumar is an educator and author.
This piece was first published on The India Cable – a premium newsletter from The Wire & Galileo Ideas – and has been updated and republished here. To subscribe to The India Cable, click here.
