Blue whale is an endangered species, a victim of human activities. It has no direct or indirect link to the recent ‘Sick Blue Whale Challenge App’ which victimised more than 100 teens across the world including six deaths in the month of August in India. However, the testimonials of the 17 years teen girl supposed to be the mastermind of the killer mobile game interpreted the linking of ‘Blue Whale’ to the game. It said, as the blue whale dies eventually when it comes to the edge of the shore at the end of the challenge the victim forced to kill itself by jumping from the edge of the top of a building or any high place.
The girl was arrested by Russian police on 30th August, 2017. The shocking details of the Killer game revealed by the alleged ‘Mastermind’ exposed many of the weakness of the human mind and its manipulation. According to Colonel Irina Volk, the Russian Interior ministry;
a. The girl was heading multiple groups
b. During the search, police found a drawing she made of 22 year old Philipp Budeikin (who was arrested and now in Siberian Jail) the man accused of being the ‘inventor’ of the deadly game, whom she adored as her role model.
c. The girl said to have played the game herself but did not complete the final stage and choose to become an ‘Admin.’
d. The suspect hid her identity and Marital status to the victims she made.
e. In contrast to similar groups, teenagers in this group were blackmailed with death threats against them or their relatives for not completing the tasks.
f. The accused set 50 tasks for the victims aimed at “Psychologically Traumatising Situations” demanding the victims to commit suicide in the final stage.
g. The Brainwashing ranges from watching horror movies to waking in the middle of the night and also self-harming.
One of the striking feature of this Killer App as described in the suicide note of the first victim in India who was 2nd year B Com graduate, “Blue whale is not a game but danger and once entered you can never exit.”
Rising worldwide concern about the deadly Mobile game has laid down some guidelines like;
1. Not to follow the Crowd and not feel pressured in to doing anything that makes them feel unsafe.
2. Try not to judge them (admin of the game) by respecting their choices, they should respect yours.
3. Spend time with friends who say ‘No’...spend time with other friends who also are not taking part.
You might catch an idea what is the ‘Sick Game’ which victimised so many people especially teenagers. Now come to our point, why and how this game is sharing similarity with the BJP led NDA (National Democratic Alliance) government at least with its ideology, style of work and vision. I won’t give unreasonable reasoning like the ‘Blue whale challenge’ gives series of tasks for 50 days having a striking similarity with Narendra Modi’s “50days’ promise to make everything right in India after Demonetisation(!) but some valid issues.
2010, the year saw some widespread rebellion and mass discontent against the government in different countries. Following years of the world economic slowdown impacted many government establishments. The economic growth hampered; many lost their jobs; corporate houses cut short their expenditure; Government also took several austerity measures and reduced their budget allocation on welfare schemes. These issues caused the large-scale unemployment, economic insecurity among the people. In such situation, the growing resentment of the people towards their respective government was conspicuous. During this period India also experienced similar mass resentment, especially among youths.
In 2004, when many developed countries reeled under the recession then government of India successfully tackled the situation and kept intact the economic growth. The people again relied upon the Manmohan Singh Government and mandated for the second time.
The issues which were being prevailed in most of the countries during 2009-10 remained more or less analogous to India however in a lesser degree. But in India, the corruption issue haunted more. Then congress led UPA government undoubtedly took many welfare and pro-people measures but the overabundance of corruption charges overshadowed all the good measures. People easily believed (likely to believe) the testimonials hyped by the opposition political parties that If these corruptions were not taking place, India’s development could have accelerated more.
Between 2009 and 2014 the severity of terrorist attacks increased. If one analysed the terrorist attacks between 2004 and 2009, can find the most of the attacks were targeted Muslim dominated or areas which are sensitive to communal issues {e.g. Jammu Railway station attack(4/1/2004), Ramjanmabhumi attack (5/7/2005), Varanasi Bombing (7/3/2006), Malegaon Bombings (2006-2008), Mecca Masjid Bombings (18/5/2007), Delhi Bombings (2008), Mumbai Terror attacks (26/11/2008)} But during 2009 to 2014 the attacks were sporadic in nature. Whatsoever the terrorist attacks was it exposed the government’s inability to counter it. Alexander Hamilton rightly said, “Safety from external danger is the most powerful director of national conduct. Even the ardent love of liberty will, after a time, give way to its dictates.”
The want of safety and overexposed of corruption had played a vital role to topple the UPA government in 2014 general election. Narendra Modi with his oratory skills and help of RSS (Rashtriya SwayamSevak Sangh) and its fringe organisation well-planned propaganda made people believe that the liberal and secular policies of the UPA government created plethora of problems including posed danger to the majority Hindus and eventually the Nation.
You might have not found any wrong with the BJP, RSS and its Fringe Organisation when they say about ‘Nationalism’, meekness towards ‘Hinduism’, preservation of old Indian tradition and Culture, Over Importance to defence, and abhorrence towards neighbouring countries especially for Pakistan. But before believing these hypes my suggestion is that put a big question, does these issues really followed by them who are propagating? Or the testimonials which are being cited for reasoning are factually true or fictitious emotional appeal? Are they put forth honest descriptions of these issues? These issues can really solve the problems of corruption, unemployment, economic growth, safety?
Now, before finding the answers to these questions I want to quote E O Wilson: “People Would rather believe than Know” descriptively it says, “Emotional Reactions easily drown out and overtake intellectual analysis and fact-based reasoning.”
During the Independence movement in India, many Hindu Organisations wanted to establish a ‘Hindu Rashtra’. Some of the leading organisations also made a secret arrangement with then British-India Government. After the Independence, they also lured some of the feudal states to transfer power to the Hindu organisations. They opposed the secular approach of the Indian constitution. Soon after the Partition and subsequent communal violence, these ‘Hindu Nationalist’ faction got good emotional support from the Hindu Migrates. Although the National Politics kept them at a distance to take hold of the power, the successive governments could not mollify the underneath sentiments towards ‘Hindu majoritarian’ ideologies. The meekness of the so-called secular and left-center political parties towards minority community has been vehemently rejected by the “Hindu Majoritarian” ideologues. They regarded it as “minority appeasement’.
As everyone, at this present juncture is well aware of all these issues, I’m restraining myself to give a descriptive analysis on it. However, It will be more rational to expose you towards the ‘Brainwashing Game’ designed by the BJP, RSS and its Fringe organisations to become a level-headed.
During the 2014 General Election BJP coined the magic words “Achhe din ane wale hain’ (Good days are coming), ‘Nayi soch, nayi ummeed’ (new thinking, new hope), ‘Congress mukht Bharat’(get rid the country of the Congress), ‘Abki baar Modi sarkar’ ( This time Modi Government) to woo voters. The election has many of its records starting from Narendra Modi’s expensive 3D holographic projection campaign to address rallies throughout the country simultaneously to record turnout of the voters. BJP’s winning as single largest party with 282 Parliament seats also a record itself.
Anybody can deny the fact that the well planned publicity campaign was one of the key factors behind the massive mandate to the Narendra Modi led BJP. Modi successfully persuaded young voters through carefully arranged propaganda. One of such propagandas by manipulating facts is rise of Muslim population. Even though BJP especially Narendra Modi had not commentated openly against the Muslims or support of Hindus but the events of his Political career evidently conveyed ‘Hindu Majoritarian’ intentions and ideologies. Before the general election, the Fringe organisations and Shadow armies of the RSS and BJP disseminated views that ‘Hindu Kahtere mein hai’ (Hindu are in danger). Many postings in different social media overwhelmed with the distorted facts that in India Hindu population has been decreasing and Muslim population increasing rapidly. If this goes unchecked By 2050 India will be a Muslim country. Even many media houses run exclusive news items giving the facts of 2011 census report. Where, the Muslim community had registered a moderate 0.8% growth to touch 17.22 crore in the 10 year period between 2001 and 2011, up from 13.8 crores, while Hindu population had shown a decline by 0.7% at 96.63 during the period. The reasoning further distorted and extended that due to polygamy Muslim Population increasing and they are getting sanction for it from the ‘Tripple Talaq’. By that time some section of the Muslim community protesting against the ‘instant Talaq’ (Talaq e Iddat), not the Tripple Talaq as a whole. Soon Modi took over this issue in his election campaigns (especially during the Uttar Pradesh Assembly election 2016) {fortunately, later Supreme Court in August, 2017 in its historic Judgment nullified the instant Talaq and suggested the parliament to amend the law in this regard} .The Propaganda relating to Increasing Muslim Population has not stopped there, the Station strategist (the outsourced social media experts employed by BJP IT cell for Propaganda) started trolling, putting arguments that the ‘love jihad’ ( where a Muslim youth woos a Hindu or non-Muslim girls to marry with a hidden agenda of conversion). Ironically many educated Hindu Youths became brainwashed by these rhetoric testimonials and taking up arms to counter it. In this context ‘Anti-Romeo squad’ is one of the notorious examples. Similar the case with ‘Cow protection’ and related mob-lynching.
‘Propaganda’ is not an uncommon word. Many know it and interpreted it by their own understandings. The term Propaganda has its origins in the 17th century efforts of the Catholic Church to propagate its views and stem the rise of Protestantism. It has gone through various permutations since. By the time Hitler was dead and the cold war underway, the word had lost its Godly associations and became a pejorative, connoting mostly the self-serving lies of nefarious tyrannical regimes.
Several Mobile apps designed by the Government of India to sensitize the people about the Government Policies is unquestionably at parlance with “new India” concept, but similar other private apps and social media platforms which disseminating the fictitious and libeled endorsements to brainwash youths is alarming.
Propaganda traffics mostly in emotions and not just negative ones’. Propagandists appeal to our fears but also to our courage, our hatred and our love. Noam Shapancer, professor of Psychology at Otterbein college who elaborately researched on How ‘Propaganda’ appeals to human mind said, Propagandists use Name Calling, Glittering generalities, Transfer, testimonials, Plain folks, Card stacking and bandwagon.
He also said, “A mind that is not trained to detect and neutralize propaganda is gullible mind, hype for the swindle.” With Similar tactic, but much severity ‘Blue whale challenge game’ victimizing the gullible minds.
Here, some may put an argument that the propaganda for ‘a good cause’ is acceptable, for them, I say, “Good ends does not make it less problematic.” And offer a suggestion, “the antidote to the process of propaganda is finding the factual truth and following the guidelines prescribed to counter ‘Blue whale challenge’.
