The BJP fielded former Union Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad, who took advantage of this sudden and unexpected “breakthrough” to link Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s “rising graph” to the central government’s “development work”, sparing journalists talk of “Modi works non-stop 18 hours, 24/7”, which has been flogged to death too-often in recent times.

The Congress had no comments on Modi’s “rising graph”, which would be admitting to Modi’s rising popularity, but if a farmer leader says it, it wouldn’t be good politics to deny, refute, or flay the claim. So, Congress Chief Spokesman Pawan Khera chose to defend Dallewal’s right to air his political views, now what’s wrong in that? Dallewal had attributed Modi’s rising popularity to “Ram”, which isn’t a state secret.

Prasad on his part, spoke of minimum support price and what the government was doing for the agitating farmers. But Dallewal had been more bothered about what to do with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s “rising graph” in the little time left to bring it down, literally begging his audience when he pointed out the paucity of time. Surely, there are farmers who also have a political commitment.

RJD leader Tejashvi Prasad Yadav and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi should be speaking of the "little time left", rather than Dallewal. The mascots of the RJD and the Congress had spent “quality time” together on February 15 and the RJD and the Congress appear to be the only two parties left in the INDI-Alliance fighting Modi’s “rising graph” apart from the Shiv Sena of the Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray faction.

So, should the media concede INDI-Alliance’s slow demise to Modi’s “rising graph”? Did the Congress decision to not give an inch to “Ram” contribute to Modi’s “rising graph”? First the Ayodhya Ram Mandir, then the Abu Dhabi BAPS Temple, with Modi doing the “Pran Prathistha” – “here in the Muslim country UAE”, too.

The Abu Dhabi temple also houses ‘Lord Swami Ayyappa’, the bachelor deity of Kerala, 'God's Own Country', which sends the most number of Indian expats to the UAE and the region. For all we know, Dallewal must also have been referring to Modi’s “rising graph” in the GCC. And Dallewal shouldn’t be called “anti-national” for pointing it out.

The fact of the matter is, ever since millions of farmers rose up to protest the Modi government’s “Non-MSP” agriculture policy, “antinational” has become the most dropped term in political discourse. Everybody, every entity, against the government’s agricultural policies is “against the country”, an anti-national.

So, if Dallewal is “anti-national” for asking that Modi's “rising graph” should be brought down ASAP, anybody who is supporting Dallewal’s call is also “anti-national”, which leaves the entire Opposition in the ranks of the “anti-national”. Dallewal mentioning that there’s very little time to take on Modi and cut his rising graph to size could even be construed as a compliment. In which case, what does that make of Jagjit Singh Dallewal? Ever since this edition of farmers’ protests began, “anti-national” has been the most used charge leveled against farmers and their well-wishers from all walks of life.

Among political parties, the Congress and the Aam Aadmi Party were the first to be branded “anti-national”. Also, Punjab’s farmers are “anti-national”, but Haryana’s farmers are not. Punjab’s farmers are also “Khalistani”, which is more reason why they should be branded “anti-national”, and denied MSP and their right to march to national capital Delhi.

So, what is the government doing, holding talks with “anti-national” farmers? Do the “anti-national” farmers have a game-plan against the “anti-farmer” government? Does the “anti-national” opposition have a strategy to use the “anti-national” farmers’ agitation to beat the BJP in the upcoming general elections and clear the decks for an opposition victory in the general elections?

Otherwise, what’s the purpose of the farmers’ protests at this time; particularly at this time, when elections are on top of the head and defeating “rising graph” Modi has become top of the graph, especially when there are farmer leaders like Jagjit Singh Dallewal who call a spade a spade?

What will the Congress-led Opposition do to cut Modi’s rising graph to size? The Supreme Court’s action against electoral bonds is a setback to the Modi regime and must have crippled the BJP’s game-plan to some extent, but will the top court’s adverse judgment make a dent in Modi’s “rising graph”? Did Jagjit Singh Dallewal get a good night’s sleep after getting to know of the death of the Electoral Bond – Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s “James Bond” to rake in the moolah for the BJP? (IPA Service)