Dr Pravin Togadia
THE most clichéd phrase about democracy is ‘For people, of people and by the people. So true in today’s Bharat. Just add to it – To Suffer endlessly. However much a common citizen tries to cope with day to day chores, plans for rainy / sunny days ahead and somehow heaves a sigh of relief, the next moment yet another suffering hits her/him. Don’t people care for each other? They do. Otherwise, for a young girl from a village in Uttar Pradesh who suffered a worse ever tragedy, lakhs of youth would not have gathered in chilling cold at Delhi going through lathi charge and water cannons. For drought in Maharashtra many people wouldn’t have come ahead to help the farmers.
The reality is that people care; Governments don’t. They merrily leave people at the mercy of almighty to suffer. Suffer endlessly.
17 sailors from Bharat, young bright, are stuck on the hi-jacked Somalian ship since past 1 year. Government gives hollow promises and does nothing. Their family members are sitting in Delhi on the streets now in scorching sun. Government let them suffer. And this is not the 1st time it happened. But no sustained policy to handle such issues.
Tamil fishermen are being killed almost every week by the Sri Lankan navy. This targeted killing by the neighbouring country has even got warring political parties in Tamil Nadu together on this issue. But the Union Government just does not care.
In Maharashtra, this is the 3rd consecutive year of ‘no rains’ situation. Promising abundant water for agriculture and for household purposes, huge dam projects were shown in the entire suffering region there. Some for 30 years and some 10 years standing there static whereas farmers and other project affected have no farms, no houses, no schools and no work.
No water from the projects as no actual projects! Now dry agricultural land is being blamed on to no rains. Thousands of farmers and others are leaving villages, cattle dead / in shelters with inadequate fodder and kids without schools.
In Bengal Canning, Naliakhali area hundreds of houses of Hindus were burnt, women molested and things looted by the truck-loads of minority people because they thought that some Maulavi was killed by someone in that locality. Hundreds of families were left to suffer while Government announced Rs 3 lakh for the Maulavi’s family!
In Uttar Pradesh Lucknow, Ambedkar Nagar 42 year old gentleman Rambabu Gupta was shot dead in broad day light. Then mobs from minorities burnt houses and shops of Hindus in Tanda area injuring many. Same time Yadav brothers – one Gram Pradhan and the other his brother – were shot dead in Kunda – Pratapgadh. Village got angry and in the scuffle a police officer Zia Ul Haque was found dead whereas many others were injured. But the media shouted in the side of Zia, Government gave jobs to his wife and brother both. MPs spoke heatedly in the parliament too! Rambabu Gupta at Lucknow and Yadav Brothers at Kunda too wanted to live; they too have families in sorrow and in need of help. But Governments just don’t care. They are left to suffer.
In a much hyped state a simple saint wanted to build a hospital for the poor. With the help of donations from devotees, they all in the village bought a little land. Hospital work started. In the day light the saint was shot dead in his head by a mob from minorities and grabbed the land. Secular Government just does not care.
There are umpteen such examples that we all know of. Every time organisations like RSS, VHP, Kisan Sangh, Mazdoor Sangh, ABVP and other associated organisations come ahead to help as we all must. Many common citizens share their responsibilities. But being proactive and prevent such situations are the duties of the ruling Governments. Common people in their small ways do try to make a difference. Medical help, agricultural innovation to help some plants, cattle and people survive, educational initiatives etc are being done by many people and NGOs.
But what about the institutions in democracy that are supposed to do it systematically and elected for doing it? Governments, various offices of many ministries, banks, judiciary and the so-called 4th pillar of democracy – media.
Siding what ‘looks’ secular, ‘moderate, ‘good’ nationally and internationally is great but not great for the nation. It ultimately makes a nation get into a state of inertia. It keeps on tumbling downwards until there is a big jerk and then it either shatters the way many south Asian nations shattered around 2000- 2001 or it just gets stagnated with static problems becoming larger than life – like population explosion, apathy towards others well-being, drought or famine, inflation, food insecurity, unemployment, youth anger and depression, old age loneliness, safety and security of the nation and so on. When the citizens of a democratic nation have to struggle for these basic things day in and day out even after 60+ years from Independence, then it means that there is a basic blunder in the system.
Leaving own citizens to suffer endlessly may be a dirty habit of power monger politicians whose vote bank matrix changes time to time. Bharat’s psyche – be it of youth or of not so young types – is no more ready to tolerate such nonsensical sufferings endlessly. Change is inevitable. And if some individuals spinning newer images for some political gains or some parties day-dreaming of a re-victory or a new victory just because the earlier Governments have failed to deliver, they are in for a rude shock. The youth and also others do not want any of these. They do not want day-dreams. Citizens of Bharat want to move ahead. The nation has risen. It is a larger phenomenon than the European René sans or Egypt’s chaotic Qahira Square. It is incomparable and it sure is neither personality-centric, nor self-centric; it is nation-oriented. It is to end the endless sufferings of common citizens. It will sweep emotions, intellect, logic and have its own uprising. Either be a part of it or perish. That’s it. So soon there will be a real democracy – for the people, by the people and of the people – NOT to suffer anyways.
(The writer can be contact at drtogadia@gmail.com)
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