Friday, January 29, 2010

So, speak up

A long time ago we had killed Gandhi and now, a mature melancholy is spread nation-wide. Words are frozen, direction leads nowhere, the magnetic compass stands indifferent. The noise of machine and voice of mischief is always there day and night making you incapable to keep awake during the day and not allow you to sleep in night. One innocent question arrogantly and abruptly rises before us – What should we do in these circumstances? Is there any answer? If 'no', come with me. If 'yes', lead me. The better proposition or the probationary position would be to march shoulder by shoulder. With the real Gandhi gone, beware of spurious Gandhis and a spurious democracy.

The Judiciary has the answer, Executive has the answer, Legislature also has the answer and even Press has the answer. But nobody is coming forward to provide it. Why? Because they do not intend to. We are always brave in carrying a convenient truth. We don't want to become Gandhi or Galileo. We don't have the courage and conviction to make a jump to uncertain unknown future in lieu of a certain present although we have a long list of the persons who have done so. We can recall a few such Columbus who could manage to keep afloat to reach the sea shore but who failed to reach the end, sank in the sea and are lost ever in our memories. And you must be alert and hear consciously the debate going on the topic of globalization which has no axis, longitude and latitude. There is no interval to this nightmare.

Statistics say that there is a polarization of properity at one end and poverty at other, making the Indian society bipolar. The middle class is losing its meaning and merging to emerge at either side. They are a confused lot. They want to pretend to be rich and in this process they have started looking rich in exterior and have become poorer in their interior. Since Independence there is a steep rise in salary of Administrative officers up to the tune of 7300 percent but what about you? Has your prosperity also increased in the same proportion? I wish to be affirmative but it is not to be. Be it Judiciary, Legislative or Executive everybody has indulged in increasing their salary even without taking you, the people of India, in confidence. Have ever they have taken your mandate? We are marginalised to be reduced as meaningless. We are mere passive spectators. They play us like an instrument whenever they want to play the music of democracy. Our marginalised muffled voice needs an explosive expression but for the want of direction and dictionary we have no place and no words to express our accumulated anguish and agony of our 'dependence' over this type of 'independence'.

We vehemently prayed for justice for last 60 years but there seems no sensitivity of justice in the statue of justice. Justice lacks 'equity', 'trust' and 'faith'. Justice is often a 'circumstantial compromise'. It cannot be classified as 'right' or 'wrong'. Justice is 'just' or 'appropriate' and not always 'accurate'. In our strife-torn society with conflicting interests what is just for one is unjust for others. Where the 'State' is the biggest litigant, to whom are the courts justifying their existence and expenditure? They are just by doing justice to whom – State or litigants? These courts mostly interpret and implement the law which was never enacted by our Legislature. Most of our laws had been enacted by British Parliament so the courts in India are 'often' just towards the state by giving interpretation of an alien law in an alien language. There is a lighter side of law – mainly fed by the ignorance and foibles of men. There are few places where the amusing and exasperating side of human nature can be watched so closely and continually as in a court of law.

The sinful dogma of democracy is the discrimination of the citizens on the line of gender. We need not peep into the undergarments to find out the gender as to whether a citizen is a male, female or simply 'e-mail'. Our citizens must have their own identity rather than being stooges, like so many in top positions our country today. We are yet to give effect to the dreams of Mahatma Gandhi. In a Country where even 'Father of the Nation' was assassinated, how long can we elude the same fate? Gandhi was killed long ago and we have to fight the assassins of democracy before they kill us. Silence is the best defense for a coward. In your bedroom a blanket awaits to warm you. If not, then come out if you have the courage and conviction. There are only two options – 'connivance' for cowards or 'conviction' for those who still want to take the country forward.
 
(Published in By-Line National Weekly News Magazine (Hindi & English) - in February 6, 2010 Issue)

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