On April 13, pro Samajwadi Party (SP) ex-bureaucrat Surya Pratap Singh mocked the humble background of new UPSC chief Dr Manoj Soni. Comparing the two-time vice-chancellor to an ‘agarbatti seller,’ he said, “Is it true that the Mahant (Monk) of Swaminarayan Mandir/SACT, Sangh worker (?) Manoj Soni has been made the chairman of the Central Public Service Commission (UPSC)? …who once sold incense sticks in the Cholas of Mumbai? Now they will recruit IAS, IPS, and IFS? Wow, Amritkaal!”
Singh was quoting TMC’s Rajya Sabha MP Jawhar Sircar, who is famous for his anti-Hindu stance. In his April 9 tweet, Sircar had written, “Hate core Hinduvadi’ monk’ Manoj Soni will now head UPSC — to select IAS, IPS, Central Service officers. God help India — please treat it as SOS!”
Many others ridiculed Dr Soni’s appointment as UPSC chief. Journalist Prasanna Mohanty mocked him for failing in class 12th. He said, “Meet XII fail entire political science scholar to head UPSC. How low can one go to screw higher education?”
Delhi University professor Apoorvanand said, “If true, and it seems it is, you know that the dismantling of India is now in its final stage.”
Retired government official Augustine Varkey said, “At one point in time, he was selling incense sticks in Ahmedabad Streets!! Now he will head the UPSC!! God save this country!?” In a follow-up tweet, he added, “Have you ever heard an incense stick seller becoming UPSC Chief?? Have you ever heard a Tea Seller becoming the PM of 130 Cr Indians???”
Another Twitter user GeetV said, “Hatemongering ‘Monk’ (who failed in his Class XII Science exam) will now head UPSC to select IAS, IPS, Central Service officers. BJP-RSS style “Meritocracy” on display. UPSC has now been officially hijacked & captured by Sanghis #BharatJalaoParty.”
Appointment of Dr Manoj Soni as UPSC chief
On April 5, Dr Manoj Soni was elected as the next UPSC Chairman. He has served as a member of the UPSC since 2017. Earlier, he had served three terms as vice-chancellor of two universities. Between the years 2005 and 2008, he had served as VC of The Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda (The MSU of Baroda). From the year 2009 to 2015, he served as VC of Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar Open University (BAOU) for two consecutive terms.
The well-known academician Dr Soni comes from a humble background. Born on February 17, 1965, Dr Soni lost his father at a very young age. He had to sell incense sticks in Mumbai’s Bhuleshwar area to meet up the needs of the family. That was the same area where once his father used to sell semi-finished clothing on the footpath. Dr Soni not only managed his family but also funded his education himself.
In 1978, his mother decided to move out of Mumbai and shift to the Anand district in Gujarat. Dr Soni at first opted for science but could not succeed and failed in class 12th. He later changed his stream to Arts at the Raj Ratna PT Patel College.
Dr Soni’s father was a member of the Swaminarayan sect’s Anoopam Mission in Mumbai. The mission also helped in his education. After shifting to Gujarat, he got associated with the mission at Mogri. In January 2020, he received Diksha as nishkam karmyogi as a follower of the Swaminarayan sect.
Notably, the sears of Anoopam Mission accept the world rather than renounce it. They have families and participate in life at every level. However, their focus remains towards the mission of service to others. The members donate most of their earnings to charity work, including running schools, supporting colleges, social work, hospitals and more.
Academic background of Dr Soni
According to his profile at UPSC, he has served three terms as VC. He was the youngest ever VC in India and the MSU. He is a scholar of Political Science with a specialization in International Relations Studies. Between 1991 to 2016, he taught International Relations at Sardar Patel University (SPU), Vallabh Vidyanagar, excluding the period when he served as Vice-Chancellor of the two universities.
His doctoral research is on “Post-Cold War International Systemic Transition and Indo-U.S. Relations”, which was one of the earliest and one-of-its-kind studies between the period of 1992 and 1995. Dr Soni is a published author. His doctoral research was published in a book titled “Understanding the Global Political Earthquake” in 1998.
During his tenure, he earned several awards and recognitions, including the rare honour of “Honorary Mayor-President of the City of Baton Rouge” by the Mayor-President of Baton Rouge, Louisiana, USA He was awarded for his exemplary leadership in empowering disadvantaged sections of society with IT literacy.
In 2015, the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants, London, UK, honoured him with the World Education Congress Global Award for Distance Learning Leadership. Dr Soni had served on the Boards of Governors of several institutions and public administration, including as a member of a quasi-judicial body that regulates the fee structure on non-aided professional institutions in Gujarat.
The hate for Dr Soni
With such exemplary academic background, Dr Soni’s appointment should have been hailed by everyone. Instead, a section of society is ridiculing him. The only reason for such hate-filled comments for Dr Soni is his association with RSS and his being a monk. Because of the hate for Hindus in general, the left-liberal section has completely ignored his achievements and academic career and reduced him to an incense sticks seller.
They projected as if the Modi government had appointed someone uneducated for the post. Ironically, when the son or daughter of someone from humble background becomes an IAS or IPS officer, these same liberals hail them. But in this case, a well-educated and highly qualified chairman of UPSC, who has already served as member of UPSC for five years, is being ridiculed because he is a monk and linked to RSS.
