Three insults to Dhyan Chand in the name of Bharat Ratna
Everyone today is talking about Dhyan Chand.
Why all of a sudden this country is forced to think about him whom it has adequately decorated in the past — what with National Sports Day on his birth anniversary and such stuff?
Why words on him are put into the mouth of anybody who is somebody in sports, be it sports persons, critics or virtually a passer by?
Has Indian hockey won any major title that warrants nostalgic mood and genuinely force reminiscences about one of its greatest stars, the immortal Dhyan Chand?
No. Not at all.
Indian hockey is still in dark, groping dark, and each day it plunges into another darker mess.
Still, the name of Dhyan Chand, world hockey’s first star, is in the newspapers, television channels, and on social network.
Indians are obsessed with non-issues, and this characteristic of this country has come to the fore once again.
The situation is akin to younger brother wants to marry, but he cannot do so, due to social pressures, till elder brother clears way so that his marrige has bigger and wider approval.
This country wants to honour one cricketer out of many hundred it produced.
Those who seen him play cricket, especially his State lobby, wants him to be honoured with Bharat Ratna, a top civilian award hitherto not given to any sportspersons.
So, rules were amended so that this cricketer can get it. It is obvious nobody amended the rules pertaining to award of Bharat Ratna in love of Dhyan Chand or sports, simply because there is no occasion for it.
Its crystal clear the rules were amended to honour a cricketer.
There cannot be a bitter insult on the persona of Dhyan Chand than this.
This country’s political class — which systematically kill our sports – and the mad media – which makes money out of cricket and conveniently forgets other sports till they win a world title – and the younger generation — for whom there is no difference between sports and entertainnment and the one which believes what they see is the world, where the past has no meaning – are on same side and rake up this issue of Bharat Ratna.
Last decade or so this award was not conferred on anybody, a good development indeed.
Now, the media frenzy has opened a Pandora box. In the process, a great soul such as Dhyan Chand is being sullied in the name of discourse, debate, opinion etc etc.
I find three distinct insults to Dhyan Chand in the ongoing, manufactured madness.
First one is of course elaborated above – just to honour a cricketer everyone wants to clear the stumbling block Dhyan Chand. This is clear case of dishonour and insult to Dhyan Chand.
Secondly, if the country wants to honour Dhyan Chand beyond what it has done – naming the historic national stadium after him, celebrating his birth anniversary as Sports Day on which national awards such as Arjuna and Dronacharya are given away by no other person than the Constitutional head of the country — only way is to see hockey winning.
In a stadium named after him, Indian hockey was beaten 8-0 in a major tournament final last year. What a contrast it is. When we were under colonial rule, Dhyan Chands team defeated an emerging global power which sought to enhance its image through sports, Germany 8-1. Honouring Dhyan Chand is honouring the sports he professed.
Third is the most serious of three insults I have in mind: Once the cricketer is given the award even if it is after Dhyan Chand, the country is going to celebrate the cricketer’s not the former’s. It is expected because this country did not celebrate Dhyan Chand’s Centenary – this task was left to his family in Jhansi – and even has not proper history of him.
Dhyan Chand getting Bharat Ratna will have a ritual mention in the media while the cricketer’s will be celebrated as a national festival.
If this country wants to belittle Dhyan Chand, let this award be given.
Every award is preceded and followed by controversy. There is total unanimity to confer Bharat Ratna on Dhyan Chand. Nobody ever will oppose this.
Can you give this award to him and then apply moratorium? Only then Dhyan Chand should be given this award.
If this award is going to be given to every Tom, Dick and Harry, please don’t insult the only sporting immortal this country could produce so far.
Note: This writer is a hockey historian, did research into the life and times of Dhyan Chand, his article on Dhyan Chand was in the NCERT Syllabus for XI standard text books (CBSE Syllabus) and contributed about 30 articles on Dhyan Chand in many publications including India Today and Hindustan Times. He was also consultant to a film company that worked on the sporting scenario of Pre-Independent India.