And it is that time of the year again. When we as a nation lament and
berate, enjoy and celebrate our being a country. When channels rerun
Gandhi the movie and news channels have panel discussions on why we
should leave him behind.
An honest man with a just demand in a
completely unreasonable format sticks out his chin, leaving people like
me in a dilemma. The rest of the junta is quick to jump to his cause,
little realising what he basically wants is a violation of democracy as
constituted here. The party in power is not clean and any reasonable
route closed by the crusader. He is a simple man who wants a simple
solution. And he is willing to die for it. Good for him and I can only
pray that the disaffected throngs who gravitate to him realise what's
happening. But have no hope of that happening.
I cannot condone
the ruling alliance for fear of being riled by my fellow civil society
members as being corrupt. it seems if you are not caught up in the
hubris of anti corruption debate and lost all sense...then you are not
worthy of this freedom that many people have given their lives for.
This brings me to the next topic. In these times we see people (poets
specially) sing paens to those soldiers who laid down their life for the
country. What I can't fathom is why now? Is it less important on other
days? Or more important today? When such overwhelming collective
reverence takes place in this country it will mean only one thing. It
will be forgotten the next day till the next independence day. And my
emotional junta that sings aye mere watan ke logon proudly with a tear
gleaming... Doesn't really know what freedom means. India got freedom
from the british in a largely unmilitary fashion. The soldiers who
fought for the country did so in wars and skirmishes with the
neighbours.
So is independence day remembrance indicative of
military achievements? How soviet of us to do so! And the whupping the
chinese meted out to us is termed 'sacrifice'. While 71 is termed as
military superiority. The idiocy of the masses is truly supreme. The
chinese are getting ready once again and looks like our pants are down
again. Low number of aircraft, specious border connectivity, which is a
ridiculous border to begin with.
What bards dream of epics to
unleash on this day. Tales to rend hearts and move minds to mush. When
you talk to soldiers you realise they know what they are getting into. I
will never forget a train journey I shared with a soldier. It was the
quietest one I've had. I asked him where he had been. He was with IPKF
in Lanka and although he did not speak much his eyes spoke of lost
comarades and faulty intel inputs. Misadventures by a dilletante PM and
pain of lost comrades. But still the guy was not feeling too noble. He
did his job quietly collected his pay. If public adulation is what the
armed forces were after we would be overwhelmed with applications to
join the forces. Not a 30% shortfall in junior and middle level
officers. This same facebooking, twitter typing youth doesn't even
consider the career as the money is more in writing code and even
selling credit on the fone to farmers in Idaho. Jai jawan used to be a
stirring cry in our country. Now it is just a tv programme.
Anna Hazare took the law into his own hands when he burnt down alchohol
stills in his village to make it alchohol free. Today even though it is
your democartic right to drink alchohol in Maharashtra if permitted ,
you cannot in ralegan siddhi... This 'gangajal' style justice may be
what is needed but it cannot be condoned.
True freedom is
independence of thought. Of being able to think for oneself. And seeing
todays herd mentality... I doubt we are free. We are manipulated first
by parents, then by peers and finally by media, the agents of mass
manipulation. To anticipate the next movie, next save the tiger
marathon, the next rozgar yojana and the next Gandhi. We live like
Pavlov's dogs ready to salivate at the next bell.
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