Soros a foe of democracy, not friend!

Democracy is not just about holding periodic elections, but essentially about fostering all-inclusive liberty, equality and justice. Soros has little inclination to promote & defend this enlightened version of democracy.

It is strange indeed that in his remarks delivered at the Munich Security Conference on February 16, billionaire George Soros was so critical of India and Prime Minister Narendra Modi!

Soros said, "Modi is no democrat. Inciting violence against Muslims was an important factor in his meteoric rise. Modi maintains close relations with both open and closed societies. India is a member of the Quad (which also includes Australia, the US and Japan), but it buys a lot of Russian oil at a steep discount and makes a lot of money on it."

Referring to the present controversy around the business tycoon Gautam Adani in India, Soros said, "Modi and... Adani are close allies. Adani is accused of stock manipulation and his stock collapsed like a house of cards. Modi is silent on the subject, but he will have to answer questions from foreign investors and in Parliament. This will significantly weaken Modi's stranglehold on India's federal government and open the door to push for much needed institutional reforms."

Observers say the Soros criticism reflects his sheer ignorance of post-colonial India's world-vision. He ought to know that, in tune with our post-Independence tradition, Prime Minister Modi's commitment to the value of democracy and the development of minorities is intact.

Under his leadership, the Bharatiya Janata Party has won several elections in various States and at the Centre. This would not have been possible if he had really incited violence against the Muslims. This community constitutes a significant percentage of the country's population. Its support is crucial in India's electoral politics.

Soros ought to know that India's close ties with both the QUAD member-nations and Russia have been rooted in New Delhi's time-tested policy of genuine non-alignment, peace and development. Also, he ought to appreciate that in India the Constitution is supreme. Its principle of checks and balances is very much operational. It is binding on all organs of the government. India's constitutional system makes it almost impossible for its Prime Minister, or, for that matter, any other single authority, to have a stranglehold on its federal government.
The observers say Soros is a Hungarian-born American billionaire. He claims to be a defender of democracy. But actually, he has been a foe of democracy. Democracy is not just about periodic elections of political officials to govern a nation. It is essentially about fostering all-inclusive liberty, equality and justice. Soros has had little inclination to promote and defend this enlightened version of democracy.

He seeks to evoke the ideas of Karl Marx and Leon Trotsky on permanent revolution. His Open Society Foundation (OSF) has been funding to spur political activism in Left-leaning/radical organizations, academic institutions, nd media outlets throughout the world.

Soros has been highly critical of the countries, such as India, Israel and the US, wherein democracy is acquiring deep roots. Israel is arguably the only genuine democracy in the Middle East. But Soros has sought to deny the Jewish State the right to defend itself against the forces that are against its very existence. His propaganda machine has been doing the anti-Israel, anti-Semitic, pro-Palestinian rant since long. Soros demeans Jews and gives millions to anti-Israel, pro-Palestinian and BDS groups.

Soros has compared Israel's self-defence measures against the attempts of its annihilation to Nazi atrocities. In his 'The Bubble of American Supremacy', he writes: "After the war [World War II], Jews resorted to terrorism against the British in Palestine in order to secure a homeland in Israel... Subsequently, after being attacked by Arab nations, Israel occupied additional territory and expelled many of the inhabitants. Eventually, the Arab victims also became perpetrators, and Israel started suffering terrorist attacks... By surviving Arab/Muslim violence all these years, and by defending themselves, the Israeli Jews have brought all these troubles upon themselves."

Ironically, Soros has been too partisan to be fair to the United States, the leader of the free world, the nation that has given Jews like him an opportunity not only to survive but also to develop themselves best. Soros has been very much aligned with the Democratic Party, pledging millions of dollars to groups such as MoveOn.org to oppose the re-election of Republican President George W. Bush in 2004. In 2008, Soros supported then Democrat Senator Barack H. Obama's presidential campaign and in 2012, he backed Obama's re-election. Soros donated to Democrat Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign in 2016 and to Democrat Joe Biden's in 2020. He called former Republican President Donald J. Trump an "imposter".

A recent report has it that Soros is right now behind an effort to buy Spanish-language radio stations. This is aimed at preventing Hispanic voters from embracing Republicans.

(Jagdish N. Singh is a senior journalist based in New Delhi. He is also Senior Distinguished Fellow at the Gatestone Institute, New York)

Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this article are the personal opinions of the author. The facts and opinions appearing in the article do not reflect the views of OneIndia and OneIndia does not assume any responsibility or liability for the same.