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India burns as Modi trumps efforts to promote Hindutva agenda
Prime Minister Narendra Modi restored Jallianwala Bagh, the site of one of the worst massacres in Indian history, on Saturday. To memorialize the massacre of over 1,000 Indians by colonial masters, a light and sound spectacle has been created. Outrage has erupted since the idea was disclosed, with many calling it disrespectful and an effort to commercialize a somber, historical location.

Historian Kim Wagner described the restoration as a "Disneyfication" of history on Twitter. It's been dubbed a "corporatization of monuments" by some. The indignation stems from the fact that the nationalist BJP administration has replaced the site's original purpose, which was to commemorate a terrible event, with a contemporary tourist attraction. Professor Chaman Lal of Jawaharlal Nehru University remarked, "People visiting Jallianwala Bagh should go with a sense of grief and anguish." They've now sought to turn it into a relaxing area with a lovely garden. It wasn't a really lovely garden.”

While commercialization of such a historic location is extremely insulting and erasure of history, there’s a lot more going on here.

In his book, Wagner claims that the memorial scarcely honours those who perished in the massacre, instead honouring nationalist heroes who were not even there at Jallianwala. The original corridor, down which General Dyer led the Indians to their deaths, has been newly painted and covered with murals, obscuring the rich history. The names of those that were slain are missing. The Bagh is no longer a place to mourn the deceased, but rather a celebration of a nationalist myth, honouring individuals who had no connection to the tragedy but who fit the BJP's nationalist narrative.

This isn't a new phenomenon. For a long time, the Modi government has pushed this narrative, ostensibly to appease the Indian public and divert attention away from the real challenges at hand.

The 2018 Statue of Unity honouring India's first Deputy Prime Minister, Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, is an excellent illustration of this. While it is understandable to honour national heroes, the fact that the statue cost INR 27 billion ($422 million) is startling. At the opening, thousands of farmers protested, all asking the same question: why spend so much money on a monument while the nation is in turmoil?

The Modi government could have built seven university campuses, six space missions, and a slew of water pipes for farmers experiencing water shortages owing to insufficient irrigation methods with the money spent on the monument. Around 72 communities have been impacted by the statute, with 19 claiming that they have received no compensation and that restoration efforts have been abandoned.

Even if the government chooses to overlook this, it cannot justify spending so much money on a statue while it is embroiled in multiple wars. The Assam-Mizoram border conflict has killed 157 people, and communal violence between Hindus and Muslims have claimed over 2,000 lives.

All of this puts the controversy around the Jallianwala Bagh monument in context. While the country suffers, the BJP administration pursues a nationalist agenda to appease the public and distract attention away from its failures to address the underlying causes. They've turned a blind eye to all of this, focusing instead on infusing the Hindutva narrative with flashy and meaningless symbols like huge sculptures and fabricated paintings.

The Modi government appears to be primarily concerned with the erasing of history and the continuation of this nationalist goal. And while India burns, no one comes to her aid.