Ahmedabad: Every revolution, Simone de Beauvoir believed, demands sacrifices from those who take part in it. Ashwin Kumar Dashrathlal Naik has made his share of sacrifices in what he says is " kranti (revolution)" against the "Modi sarkar".
Revolution has cost Naik his shirt. Literally.
Naik, who retired recently as chief engineer in ONGC and now lives in Chandkheda in Ahmedabad, has been fighting against what he alleges is the forcible acquisition of farmland by the Gujarat government under the guise of the Town Planning Scheme.
He has vowed not to wear a shirt till the BJP - nalayak (worthless) is his favourite term to describe the BJP - mends what he thunders is its greedy ways. Some of his other innovative pledges, much like modern-day Bhishma pratigyas, include not stepping into his home (he sleeps on a cot outside) and eating food without taking a seat.
A slogan denouncing the BJP as " bhrashtachari (corrupt)", "deshdrohi (traitor)" and, again, Naik's favourite phrase, " nalayak", is painted across the wall of his house, a rather novel sight in a state that has been a witness to numerous acts of intimidation by the government. Even Naik's battered car has been touched by his revolutionary spirit. It is embossed with similar graffiti.
Naik's parents were agriculturalists. "They passed on their love for the land to me," he says.
He started his campaign when the state turned its attention to his large plot. Since then, he has been busy highlighting such issues as land acquisition, the purported nexus between land sharks and the government as well as the denial of or, otherwise, poor compensation paid to landowners and farmers to anyone who would care to listen.
But then revolutions claim a price. Naik has had to put up with social stigma on account of his battles. He says he finds it difficult to find a match for his two sons who work as engineers in Pune. His wife, a teacher, is his pillar of support. But some of his brothers are critical of his endeavour for justice.
It is a lonely crusade in other ways as well. "I have written to all chief ministers in India, including Mamata Banerjee, about the plight of landowners in Gujarat. But not one of them has responded," admits Naik ruefully.
Even those opposing the BJP in his home state, the Congress and its allies - Hardik Patel, Jignesh Mevani and Alpesh Thakor - are yet to count Naik as a co-warrior.
It is not difficult to see why other revolutionaries have seemingly forsaken Naik. Many look at him as an eccentric.
He regales visitors with the tale of an airline's outrage when he insisted on boarding a flight dressed in his trademark Gandhi topi, undershirt and trousers. More importantly - perhaps this is the cause of derision - Naik remains irreverent towards the power that governments and dissidents love to flaunt.
That Naik cuts a solitary figure among krantikaris (revolutionary) is also a powerful testimony to the importance of organisation and mobilisation in the context of protest.
But Naik is undaunted: he marches on alone. Interestingly, like Narendra Modi, Naik claims that he too is fighting to restore Gujarat's asmita. But Naik's idea of pride, unlike Modi's, is pivoted on returning land to the dispossessed.
"The BJP will be routed this time," says Naik with a wink. One is not sure whether he is serious or has made the prediction in jest. But then revolutionaries, with or without a shirt, work in mysterious ways.
