Unhindered political contestation is a democratic ideal. Authoritarianism desires total domination. Obstacles, if any, must be eliminated. Little wonder, then, that Rahul Gandhi has become such a thorn in the flesh. As the Leader of Opposition, he obviously will not refurbish the pretence of the Supreme Leader’s infallibility. But he cannot go so far as to pull down the facade of eminence. You are free to nibble. You cannot demolish the fort.Gandhi indeed tried to demolish the fort. Three issues he raised – former Army chief M.M. Naravane’s book that refers to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s indecision on the border conflict with China, the trade deal with the United States and the Epstein files – combine to tear Modi’s image asunder. He struck at both Modi’s nationalism and personal integrity, creating real apprehensions about flattening the entire edifice so meticulously built through the power of the propaganda machinery. While the mainstream media, Modi’s best ally, did its best to distort the messaging, a robust alternative system has now emerged to spread the word far and wide.The response to Gandhi was not a credible rebuttal of his charges. It was undemocratic but ferocious: a threat to kick him out of parliament! The government announced its plan to bring a privilege motion first, but settled for a substantive motion that has much wider implications, including a ban on contesting elections in the future. The Indian Republic began its journey with a prime minister, Jawaharlal Nehru, who compelled Congress members to attentively listen to his best critics, and has reached a stage where truly damaging criticism is absolutely intolerable.While Gandhi has been thrown out of parliament in the past as well because of politico-legal machinations by the same regime, his biting remarks on Modi’s nexus with conglomerate Adani, his inability to confront China and his suspicious role in the Rafale deal have been frequently expunged from records.Does Modi want a curated, timid and obedient Leader of Opposition? Is the combative and uncompromising Gandhi, who was mischievously portrayed as Pappu, impossible to handle? So much so that he must be pushed out of the political frame, not only disqualified as a Member of Parliament (MP) but debarred from contesting elections? Is asking questions a crime in a Modi-fied democracy? Why cannot the prime minister answer questions, telling the Leader of Opposition that the Army chief’s contention was wrong, there was no undue pressure for signing the trade deal and anybody’s involvement in the Epstein crimes will not be tolerated?An unambiguous assertion that the Adani case was not influencing India’s decision-making would obviously be a better choice than throwing the Leader of Opposition out of parliament.By removing Gandhi from parliament for the second time, Modi will self-attest the death warrant of democracy in India. That is a huge price to pay for escaping scathing criticism in parliament. As far as Gandhi’s role in politics is concerned, it cannot be finished off by disconnecting him from parliament. He has established himself as the main challenger to Modi and any vindictive action will only enhance his stature. That will aggravate the RSS-BJP’s problems. The undeniable truth is that the desire for total domination can fructify only on the debris of democracy.Whose gutter?“There is no evidence that Donald Trump has committed a crime. Everyone knows that.”People will laugh if a blind, bigoted follower of the American president said this on the street. But this was pronounced by Pam Bondi, Attorney General of the United States, before the House Judiciary Committee hearing regarding the Department of Justice’s obstinate refusal to release all of the six million Epstein files. The top law officer brazenly asked the nation to discuss the booming stock market instead of the revelations in the Epstein files. When a female House representative asked Bondi to apologise to the survivors, who were physically present at the hearing, she declared, “I’m not going to get in the gutter for her theatrics.”Who likes to get in the gutter? The real question is: who created this morbid, stinking gutter where hundreds of girls were dragged to satisfy the perverse sexual fantasies of roguish men? The whole of America saw those repulsive visuals of Trump frolicking with girls. It is clear he was Epstein’s trusted mate. Bondi was expected to ask Trump: Why did you get into the gutter for your perverse pleasures? Both Democratic and Republican lawmakers accused her of a shameless cover-up and violation of her oath of office.Democracy thrives in America because responses on moral questions are not decided by political loyalty. In India, nobody from the Bharatiya Janata Party has asked anybody from the ruling establishment: Why did you get in the gutter?What minister Hardeep Puri did, or did not do, in the Epstein gutter is not the question. The question is: Why did he get into the gutter? Whether it was for a professional goal, to discuss political or business issues… why at all? Why was Anil Ambani wallowing in the gutter, fixing meetings for India’s Prime Minister? Why does the gutter show traces of India’s indiscretion? It must cause shame and trigger moral outrage. Modi’s silence and Puri’s gestures of intimidation do not wash. There is enough evidence to show Puri’s sustained relations with Epstein, no matter if he drank only coffee in the gutter.India has seen people’s careers getting destroyed because of links with Dawood Ibrahim. They were not Dawood’s sharpshooters; many were doomed if they did any business with him. A meeting, a chat, anything was enough to sink you.Jeffrey Epstein’s realm is not just a scandal. It is not merely a crime either. Epstein waged a war against humanity; it was an attack on our civilisational ethos. Trapping the rich and the powerful into the unforgivable act of raping children, trafficking women – there are even repeated references to cannibalism in the Epstein files – was a sinister design to create a rotten world. Who knows if this snare was part of a political project to control the levers of power across the globe? Is the civilised world ready to tolerate a cabal of thugs who use the children of the poor to satisfy their lust for power? While the cry for justice must grow louder, ordinary people must forge solidarities across regions and religions to safeguard their interests, and girls, from the tycoons who enjoy immunity from the law and morality.Inclusive BangladeshWishing the new government well, Prime Minister Narendra Modi wrote in his message: “India will continue to stand in support of a democratic, progressive and inclusive Bangladesh.” It is definitely desirable to have such governments as described in the neighbourhood. But here is a reminder: India itself will cease to exist without being “democratic, progressive and inclusive”. It is incumbent upon the prime minister to protect constitutional democracy in India, which rests on inclusive politics. It should deeply worry him if a “Deepak” is threatened to be snuffed out for shining a light into the darkness of bigotry.We have seen visuals of goons threatening to silence Deepak, the young man from Uttarakhand who opposed the Bajrang Dal’s tactics of intimidation to force a Muslim man to change the name of his shop. His shop, named Baba School Dress and Matching Centre, apparently angered the Bajrang Dal because ‘Baba’ is part of Hindu symbolism and a Muslim shopkeeper must not use it. This crassness is not only illegal, it is illogical as well because there is no religious or linguistic monopoly over names anywhere in the world.Deepak stood in solidarity with the Muslim man, attracting national attention because human beings – except Sangh Parivar members – rejoice when they hear stories of compassion and harmony. While sundry Hindu outfits jumped into the fray to “teach a lesson” to Deepak, it was heartening to see police intervention to curb the hooligans. Some Supreme Court lawyers have come forward to financially help Deepak, whose income dried up amidst the unseemly controversy.Remember Nida Fazli’s lovely couplet: “Jin chiragon ko hawaon ka koi khauf nahin/ Un chiragon ko hawaon se bachaya jaye…”If Modi wants inclusive politics in Bangladesh, he must rein in forces within the Sangh Parivar which are hell-bent on erasing everything that is linked to Islam or Muslims in India. He should ask his chief ministers, ministers, MPs, MLAs and workers to imbibe constitutional values and respect pluralism. Above all, he should himself completely discard a divisive mindset and speak the language of unity instead of using metaphors that divide and instigate.Sanjay K. Jha is a political commentator.‘Politic: An Uncensored Diary’ tracks the many goings-on in the corridors of power.