The prime minister has yet again spoken of “Dimagi Naxals”.That he did so on the auspicious day of Diwali when all Indians are one, and said so to an audience of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), is a circumstance that most well wishers of the nation may have thought inadvisable.Indeed, in a quieter hour, when the Dimagi great leader is alone with his transcendent ruminations, he may, we hope, conclude similarly.It may hardly be thought constructive for the numero uno, tasked with the goal of uniting the nation, to have spoken derisively of his own people, however disliked, to a militarist conclave.Be that as it may, here is the point:Why does Narendra Modi shy away from debating the republic’s “Dimagi Naxal” number one, namely the most troublesome leader of the opposition, Rahul Gandhi?Illustration: Pariplab Chakraborty.After all, wherever there is any real democracy, people do debate each other.Indeed, in the oldest one, of which we Indians are so enamoured, they do debate even within party structures to contest for leadership right.Not to mention the constitutional prerogative they accord to their Fourth Estate to interrogate them from time to time on their policy and political predilections, as also to hold them to account for their misdemeanours.Many in India are askance at the grave risk that Rahul Gandhi is taking in inviting Narendra Modi, the world’s most thunderous public perorater, to a debate on the subject of Dimagi Naxalism, on nationalism, on social and economic policy issues, on leadership lifestyles and behind-the-scene realities etc.After all, imagine the damage his defeat in such a one-on-one debate with the almighty Modi must cause, not just to him, but to the entire spectrum of the opposition, rendering any further challenge to the establishment unthinkable.And yet, the foolhardy Gandhi persists in inviting Shri Modi to debate him on all such issues at the hands of any moderator and in front of an audience too.Some gumption, wouldn’t you say?But, even more astonishingly, in refusing the debate, think what an opportunity the prime minister is missing to once and for all put paid to the “Dimagi Naxal” menace.Once Rahul Gandhi is blown off, who else may pick up any courage subsequently to persist in raising an anti-national eyebrow at the numero uno?Truly incomprehensible this course of action/inaction on behalf of Narendra Modi to make a conclusive mince-meat of the nagging battalions and hidden brigades of hit-and-run “Dimagi Naxals” who tend to get away with one cryptic barb or other.Why, his devoted “Andh Bhakts” ask, does Shri Modi, the prime scion of the Sanatan, turn away from this invitation to an intellectual “mal-a-yud” that could not but lend finality to the triumph of the Sanatan?Indeed, even the men and women of the CRPF and other Forces may also be wondering in their proud patriotic heart as to why their heroic icon should bypass this bout.The danger is that Shri Modi’s refusal to take on Shri Gandhi may in time persuade even his legions of followers that Shri Modi may not, end of day, have the wherewithal to engage in a much-needed Shastr-Arth with even the least of the “Dimagi Naxals” whom he never tired of calling “Pappu” till the other day.And that would be a calamitous dent to the colossal brain-power of the so-self-regarding Modi Ji.Not to speak of the opportunity that the nation at large would miss of being both entertained and educated by the debate of the millenium.A true disciple of the great Adi Shankaracharya, Modi ji might be justly expected to emulate the task of the pioneering proselytiser, and put an even more emphatic stamp on Bharatiyata than was possible for the original Guru to do in his time.After all, the old guru did not have the CRPF to draw on his side in setting upon a part of the nation.May the expectant nation, thus, plead with Modi ji to haste please to put Rahul Gandhi in his place?Badri Raina taught at Delhi University.This piece was first published on The India Cable – a premium newsletter from The Wire – and has been updated and republished here. To subscribe to The India Cable, click here.