It all started with the inflammatory comment by Nupur Sharma on national television which rocked the nation, well, it did not really all start there, but decades back. But well, right now, if anything is happening people are getting more cognizant of the downfall of an ancient civilization.
Amid fire, literally, fire, and fury that sparked in different parts of India, we “the sensible people” empathically claim that we didn’t start the fire. I mean, wasn’t it started by the ruling party who was incessantly poking at the emotions of a certain community with sharp shears shredding their lives to pieces and breaking down all barriers of protection for them?
After Nupur’s comment, protests exploded over the land and some parts saw stones and fire, but it was not one-sided as the Media conveniently portrays, I mean, we saw videos with stones thrown by both sides and then talking about the fires, would a 16% community that is constantly belittled with laws and chants really take up arms and hit police upfront?
All said and done, well, after a fired fight whose origins are obscure, the chief minister of Uttar Pradesh rose up in a storm of frenzied fury gathering his robes announcing coldly that he was going to bulldoze homes of all the rioters. At first, we thought the CM was speaking about something else. I mean, one doesn’t just bulldoze down homes just to “teach people a lesson.” These things don't happen in a so-called democracy and civilized nation, but then in all this, the Courts in India seemed to have caught a sore throat and lost their voices.
It was quite evident to most except a blinded clan, that the CM was on a spree of revenge targeting only one community, leaving out another even though they too rioted. Of course, his fans were delighted, spurring him on, clapping madly, devoid of feeling the pain of other people losing everything in a sweep of a second. It takes a lifetime to build a home after all and the agony of losing it on the whims of a chief minister is too big a crime.
When the Chief Minister actually sent the bulldozers to break down shanties and beautiful homes, the nation watched horrified and some of us had tears in our eyes to witness the downfall of a nation, more than the ruins of a home. I mean, not all were horrified, there were some Media persons who were actually enjoying the bulldozing with sadistic mirth and the right-wings were cheering it on, howling with happiness.
Hidden diabolic hearts were uncovered in these troublesome times. Perhaps worse than anything was two teenagers were brutally shot by agitated police in Jharkhand just for being part of the protests, the cops not really seeing who they were, and the blood-thirsty hyenas started clapping gleefully over this tragedy chanting the “Islamists” need to be taught a lesson. The silence of political leaders across parties echoed a chilling message that no one really cared, it was all for votes and politics is a dirty game.
Some camps of people started asking under which law in India anyone, even a chief minister or prime minister can bulldoze down anyone’s home without a court of trial. They emphatically declared this act of tearing down people's homes in an act of terror.
While the crowds were out on streets during the protests, who knows who threw stones or broke bones or lit fires? There was no court trial.
Who knows, one fine morning you might wake up to find a monstrous bulldozer in your backyard without notice, tearing down your home to shreds because you incited the government in some way and caused them offenses, infuriated their senses, but no political party was there to raise up your defenses.
Rita
Who knows, one fine morning you might wake up to find a monstrous bulldozer in your backyard without notice, tearing down your home to shreds because you incited the government in some way and caused them offenses, infuriated their senses, but no political party was there to raise up your defenses.