Karnataka gets a chance to act tough

The entrapment of the Hindutva brigade’s rabid face, Pramod Muthalik, in a sting operation injects a greater sense of cynicism about political outfits. Even causes, no matter how right or how wrong they are, are on sale or, in this case, on rent.

That many fringe organisations, like the Ram Sene that Muthalik heads, survive on roll call, another name for extortion or, as it is alleged in this case, offering their services for a price, is fairly well known. But for those who believe in the fundamentalist principles that such organisations espouse, the revelation that the cause is only a means to make money should come as a bit of a shocker. Surely there will be many among such followers who will be in a denial mode and attribute motives to those who staged the sting operation.

Quite obviously such an operation to expose the underside of an organisation or the duplicity of individuals will have a motive. Even when it is to merely show the dirtier side of an organisation or an individual, the fact that evidence was gathered through deceit raises questions about the ethics of the profession. There are no clear answers for that because there are as many sides to the argument as you can possibly think. The debate whether such sting operations are justified will never end because those who have less concern for the means than the end will always approve such operations.

No matter how hard he tries to deny the charge he could organise a riot for an appropriate fee, Muthalik’s reputation is blackened by this episode far more than the can of paint that was poured on him a few months ago. It would be equally embarrassing for the Hindutva brigade as well. Though the BJP and other organisations, under the RSS umbrella have disowned Muthalik, the suspicion that this is only an arms-length policy for the sake of public consumption, certainly puts the Hindutva votaries on the defensive.

It is quite probable that the BJP has completely disowned the Ram Sene and its chief. That is evident from the number of cases launched by the state against him. But the perception, however, is that the state government is soft towards such forces. It is this perception that needs to be corrected and the first step in that direction would be for the state to deal with fringe organisations with a toughness that has been missing so far. And the way it deals with the Ram Sene, post exposure of Muthalik, will have a bearing on its image.

The non-BJP parties have, as usual, sought a ban on the Ram Sene. That serves little purpose because it does not take much for Muthalik or his followers to change the name of the organisation but continue their activities. Such groups espousing some cause or other keep springing up once in a while. That is the way of life in civic society and it can’t be stopped. When they create trouble way beyond holding up a demonstration and beating up women, like the Taliban do, merely because they drink in a pub, the state ought to be severe enough in dealing with them. Sadly, that does not seem to be the case.