WHY COMMUNAL VIOLENCE IN INDIA??

"An eye for an eye makes the world blind". What Gandhiji’s golden words alluded to can be universally applied to any human society across the world. Talking about India what's disconcerting is that, the issues which churned violence at time of Gandhiji are still equally prevalent in modern India even after 66 years of Independence. India can be proud of its secularity but this secularism at many instances got diminished to just a feeble form of tolerance, blown off by the smallest of sparks.

Muzaffarnagar, Uttar Pradesh-50 dead and about half a lakh people forced to take refuge in camps!! Harassment of a Hindu teen by a Muslim boy was rumored to have started the entire gory chapter. The Muslim boy was killed by the teen's brothers and in retribution the two Hindu boys were killed by the Muslims. What followed is riot and bloodshed claiming lives of 50 and hard earned property of thousands. Although the reason behind the spark is contentious and both the communities involved have come up with their own versions, the form it took was horrifying. It is doubted that a minor tiff between boys of the two communities might have triggered the mayhem. Whatever be the initial backdrop, the incidents which subsequently transpired were extreme forms of vindictiveness. Incidents of women being teased are unfortunate but occur very frequently in our society. Same is the case with minor quarrels given how quickly people get offended in these days. So most of us would agree to these issues being trivial and such incidents engulfing peace of the community only highlights the deadly volatility lurking in our Indian society. Initial revenge (to the extent of killing) followed by a spree of killings on communal patterns have taken lives of thousands of innocents in the country. There is a very thin line separating secularism and communalism in India. Everyday society treads cautiously when it comes to communal divisions. But over the decades many petty issues have spiraled into big communal clashes. Would scenes in Muzaffarnagar have been that violent if the issue had involved a single community?? Definitely, not. An issue which should have been closed by immediate and appropriate police and administrative intervention was allowed to be fuelled even further. The usually latent animosity existing in minds of people residing in areas like Muzaffarnagar has been highly shaped by the communal history of the place. The cumulative factor therefore enables an otherwise petty issue to spark off a big conflagration.

In the case of Muzaffarnagar riots the political parties as expected have just bickered and have done nothing except for trading the blame for inaction and deliberate escalation. But definitely its the police and the government which are to be held accountable and responsible. Samajwadi Party being the government can't play the blame game just as any other political party. It is the ruling party and all the powers required for action were in its hands. SP's complicity and decision to go easy with one community to consolidate its minority vote bank has taken it nowhere. In 1990's Mulayam Singh earned the sobriquet of 'Mullah Mulayam' for his stand to protect the Babri Masjid. The order to shoot kar sevaks at Ayodhya on 30th October, 1990 further earned Mulayam the trust of the minority community. But this time around, both Hindus and Muslims have been equally on the losing side. Akhilesh Yadav government's has thus been facing flak from all parties and most importantly from the common people of all communities. Its routine appeasement policy didn't save its face as it failed to take action when it was most required. SP has thus turned out to be the biggest loser and the riots giving the much hyped CM a big blot on his tenure. The SP's appeasement policy only shows its insecurity backed by the party's lack of substantial development and administration in the state. 

Bodies butchered beyond recognition, doctors reporting horrifying conditions of dead bodies found shows the anarchy and uncontrolled slaughter that took place. The police's inaction further escalated the tensions. Politicians of all parties marking their party's support by freely delivering fiery speeches added fuel in large quantities. Provocative posts circulated on networking sites undeterred did the same. Warrants were issued for the sake of action but no leader was actually arrested at the right time. The politicians dared to arrest them and the police just submitted to the situation powerlessly to avoid any political backlash. Top police officials were blamed and suspended just as a token of the government's action. 

But knowing the obvious fact that political power pulls the strings of police in this country, shouldn't the politicians be actually suspended? Every police personnel has to budge to their pressure to hold on to their tenure and posting.

In the case of Durga Shakti Nagpal SP was so farsighted that she was transferred in a jiffy. 41 minutes was boosted as a record time in which decisions regarding her were taken. But despite getting alerts from Central agencies regarding brewing communal tensions in Muzaffarnagar, no action was taken or more correctly, no action was allowed to be taken by the government. In almost all riots which have ravaged India, dozens of Commissions subsequently set have raised fingers on the complicity of politicians and the alleged role of police in blindly following their orders to go slow on the situation. Be it the Nanavati report of 1984 anti Sikh riots, Srikrishna report of 1993 Bombay riots, or reports of Gujarat riots and others, all have pointed out to the connivance of political parties in giving shape to the situation according to political benefits and their communal ideologies. 

If the so called leaders of Indian politics want to do something for the people apart from their languid lip service post such riots, they should urgently look into the implementation of police reforms. The Supreme Court's directives sought to achieve functional autonomy for the police (through security of tenure, streamlined appointment and transfer processes, and the creation of a "buffer body" between the police and the government) and enhanced police accountability (both for organizational performance and individual misconduct. Setting of a State Security Commission, fixed tenure for top cops (to have someone who is conversant with the area), grievance redressal authorities in each district are few of the desired features. The reluctance of state governments is understandable as the reforms will rob the political parties off their impunity. But the Supreme Court needs to push for its directives with stricter deadlines. The Supreme Court's ruling on tainted MPs and MLAs is a silver lining. It snaps the network the gundaas, criminals and other gangs have developed with the bureaucrats and the government.

Wooing one community (and in process alienating another) by playing tokenist politics has always been clouded by insecurity. Providing better administration, security and inclusive growth is the only way to create a healthy political environment and a healthy democracy. More importantly it's the best way for a government to credit its incumbency!! 

CALL OF DHAAKI's DHAAK...

The way often used by me to invigorate myself when I am bogged down is, dreaming of anything joyful which is imminent to happen in the time to come.Being a Bengali or more stylishly a Bong,the occasion of Durga Puja can be the perfect nominee for such a craving.With less than a month left, the thoughts of merriment have already started flirting the mind.The wide blue sky, the wisp of autumn freshness and the enchanting vibrancy of dhaaks mingling with daily chores of life symbolizes the homecoming of Maa Durga. Preparations have begun and this preparative engagement is fun in itself. Flashing pujo sales,overcrowded malls, people enthusiastically shopping and coming out with bags full of new bought dresses are scenes which mark the liveliness of the festive season. Durga Puja preparation calls for the latest trends in fashion wear,designer clothes and the trendiest footwear.The atmosphere remains surcharged with fun and gaiety.

While moving through the city, the site of numerous pandals being raised up by skilled workers catches attention and a spark of joy creeps into one's heart. Happiness fills the body and one patiently awaits the arrival of Durga Puja.    

Sarat sakal, Himer hawa

Anmone tai hariye jawa,

Kashful r Dhaker tale

Siuli nache dale dale,

Maa Eseche bachor ghure...!

Pujor hawa jagat jure... 

Durga Puja commences with Mahalaya.Bengalis traditionally wake up before dawn on Mahalaya morning to listen to enchanting and captivating voices reciting hymns from the scriptures of the Devi Mahatmyam or Chandi. The day is usually a holiday and so are the other important days of the Puja. In case it isn't, then a true Bengali does his best to budge anyone in bid to get holidays for those few priceless days. The festivity and its atmosphere is worth holidaying for everyone.

As the countdown (be it in one's mind or that shown on Bengali channels) approaches an end, Bengalis gear themselves up for the much awaited 4 days- Sashti, Saptami, Ashtami and Nabami. Be it special supplementary magazines showcasing Durga Puja or be it those gentle touches of Pujo on news channels and TVserials; all are good enough to gently remind of the approaching gaiety.

With all shopping done and plans chalked out finally Durga Puja arrives. Sashti is the day when Goddess Durga arrives. The day starts early with a morning bath followed by prayers called Pushpanjali at the local pandal. Sitting at the pandal and seeing others offer their prayers and gossiping with friends is one thing which everyone rejoices. And at the same time one cannot resist his/her own eyes from frequently getting attracted by the glittering,beautiful idol of Maa Durga and ask for her blessings from deep inside the heart.

The city takes a different look during the Pujo days, especially at night. Millions of people come to the city and line up before the pandals. Pandal-hopping is the essence of the festival. The city is gorgeously lighted. Beautiful formations of jhalar, tuni lights are laid, some of which present well thought of depictions. These catch the attention of the populace and make the city glitter ostentatiously. Pandals are countless and many like me spend the whole night hopping pandals. This obviously is in accordance to one's stamina. Many opt for a vehicle but my experience says that it’s easier to cover any distance on the overcrowded streets by walking (like thousand others).

Food has always been close to a Bengali's heart and Puja days are best to explore the luring street food of Calcutta. Normal restaurants are packed and also the numerous temporary food stalls opened by locals around pandals are also a hit, providing the owners a good, quick income. Puchkaas, chowmein, egg roll, ohh its already watering my mouth!!

The most catching site after Maa Durga is her creations. That means us. On occasion of Puja everyone daubs his/her new bought clothes. Sparing a minute and keenly observing the colorful, intricately designed sarees, kurtas, pyajamas and other trendy dresses worn by people can be good fun. Attire of most look beautiful but there are always some whom you can find too garish or exhibiting a peculiar, funny dressing style. Both in either case it’s the vigor and liveliness of the person which needs to be acknowledged. Isn't it??

               

Special trains, buses are available 24 hours to provide scores of people comfortable conveyance. Underground metro rail runs beyond regular schedule.

The overall scene of the city is-people roaming, traffic flowing, streets wrapped in decorations and crowd flocking the beautiful pandals!! All these make the city buoyant and vibrant to one's delight. The overflowing happiness is evident and one only draws more of it from the divinity of the occasion and the atmosphere around.To say the city doesn't sleep for a moment on those Pujo days wouldn't be incorrect.

Durga Puja and not talking about pandals will be a big injustice. The pandal is the adobe of Maa Durga. While some of them are simple structures, others are often elaborate works of art with themes that rely heavily on history, current affairs and sometimes on pure imagination. The pandals are of diverse kinds. Some are made of simple made from attractive cloths while some are made of match sticks, hay, bottles, etc., which are results of great imagination and hard work. Various prizes sponsored by channels and different organizations for best pandal decorations are also at stake. This inspires and motivates the Puja committees to come up with something different and beautiful every year! These pandals clamour for admiration and praise of the populace. Goddess Durga's idol is what draws reverence and prayers from all. Intricately sculpted idols made by hardworking, talented craftsmen bring life to the idol and are worth appreciation and piousness.

Time flies when one sits at his local('paara's) pandal. Dancing on dhaak beats, gupshuping, seeing kids play(sometimes funnily with the mic), offering prayers or be it enjoying fun activities like quiz, singing, dhonuchi naach...There is no dull moment out there. On Ashtami we embrace Goddesses’ bhog. Khichidi deliciously made is incomparable to any other spicy food and is out of the world to eat. Anyways whatever is the menu it is Maa Durga's bhog and most importantly is food to eat.

In all the happiness and fun one doesn't realize when the three days pass by. Dashmi, the last day is when Goddess leaves us. Although being saddening, people dance to the tunes of dhaak while their procession reaches the place of immersion. With shouting voices of 'Asche bochor abar asbe'(meaning Goddess will again come next year) the wait for next year's Durga Puja starts.

Maa Durga is the Goddess of divine power against all evils. Not just worshipping but also reflecting the same respect to all women in real life is what is required.This is the true and ultimate form of reverence to Goddess Durga!!  

Quest For A Better Judgment

27 months in a juvenile home!! 

That was just what the trial court afforded to give to the rape accused in accordance with the Indian law. The reaction that spilled out was as expected that of extreme anger and disappointment. The fury among large swathes of people is legitimate. The accused who allegedly violated the victim’s body with a rod, in any circumstance deserves to get a bigger punishment. Simply because he was 7 months younger than 18 doesn’t justify his inability to understand the moral quality of his act and comprehend its ramifications. What could have those priced and decisive 7months brought for the boy? Surely his propensity to commit such a heinous crime wouldn’t have changed. But sadly the public and more than anyone else the victim in such cases can only lament about the shortcomings and inadequacy of the Juvenile Justice Act.

27 months is a mockery of justice. It fails the bravery of Nirbhaya and those numerous girls and women who were unfortunately raped by a juvenile. The law sadly seems more concerned about the future of the accused rather than the victim. In India, a rape victim not only endures physical injuries but also fights the mental and emotional battle flagged off by the crime and our very own insensitive society. In such cases, her perpetrators being meted out with stern punishment can do wonders for her fumbling confidence. On a broader view it will act as an alarming deterrent for other probable perpetrators and thus instill higher confidence among the currently targeted female population of the country. The court cannot always seek JJA (Juvenile Justice Act) for every crime committed by a below 18. What if someone who is convicted under POTA or TADA is found to be a juvenile? Obviously punishment of 3 years in a reformatory home no ways commensurate with the gravity of such crimes committed. 

The benefits can even be exploited by criminal masterminds in scouting conduits under the age of 18 to carry out serious crimes. Such premeditation and planning (even under someone) clearly indicates the person’s maturity of understanding. 

The law getting stuck with age can be a big letdown and can undo much awaited thoughts of justice in such cases. A finer judgment is what is required. If this very thing called judgment is missing then what’s the purpose of a judge and a court. Law is for people and not the other way around. Although being the tougher path, the case by case approach needs to be incorporated. When heinous and horrendous crimes are at stake, the law simply shouldn’t work on a default formula. Brutality, depravity supported by appropriate forensic investigation needs to be used to judge understanding of an accused. In the current age of technology and all sorts of exposure where a child matures much faster, the boy in question needs to be scanned by law in accordance with his mental and intellectual growth. This has been proposed by many and is the best I can agree to. 

Setting a standard age threshold can be highly unjust for coping with each and every case. Any age for purpose of fixing criminal liability is a disputable proposition. The annoying, yet decisive thin line separating 17 and 18 will remain the same even between 15 and 16 if the age is lowered to 16 (the previous age bar in India). Thus keeping such disputes aside, the heinous crimes definitely call for a finer judgment.

Even if the age of discretion remains 18, the test for age of an accused is a highly dicey issue. School or birth certificates often carry a false date of birth. Bone ossification test is able to predict age to plus, minus a few months and the law takes the lower end of the range. Such uncertainty lends those few months which gets cashed in by the accused. 

Giving 3 years in a juvenile house for amending a juvenile fails on two fronts. Firstly, the reformatory homes are themselves inadequate. Callous attitude of officials and lack of oversight mar these institutes. They continue to be clouded with depressive feeling and thus do no good to a juvenile arrested. The maltreatment faced in process makes the boy a more hardened criminal or at least a defeated, lost human being, thus failing the very thought process and concern of the juvenile act. Secondly, does 3 years buy him enough penance? And most importantly will the society allow the reintegration of the boy with the mainstream, given that he went through just 3 years for such a dire crime. 

Death penalty would be regressive but 3 years is too less. Many more cases of rape have unleashed the debate of juvenile age. Recently one of the accused in Mumbai gang rape case is said to be juvenile. Seeing the increase in rapes and the role of such juveniles the law needs to be amended. 66.66% of juveniles arrested in 2012 were between 16-18. This can no longer be overlooked. Law needs to take urgent steps to help India regain the trust of its female population.

Often it is contested that the juveniles accused are mainly from poor sections of the society who have been torn by a childhood marred by poverty, illiteracy and abuses. But these conditions are prevalent for criminals above 18. Isn’t it?? Also when the much needed shift of attention focuses a victim one finds many of them too ridden by such a life and the rape horribly adds on to her existing miseries. The sate fails a juvenile both- before a crime and even after the crime. Just implementing the intermediary law strictly without support from right and left in place makes the overall desire for a society with lesser crime, a bleak prospect.

The adage which advises law to wipe out the crime and not the criminal should hold but the law needs to strike an urgent balance between the future of the criminal and the prospect of justice for the victim. 

BAD is NO HERO!!

“Mujhko.... pehechan lo.... main hoon don.....”

Over the years Bollywood has had the craze of coming up with films depicting the character ‘DON’. Stories of few have been fictitious, while few others have very closely presented the actual life of gangsters like Dawood Ibrahim and other wanted mafias. Such films have either focused their love life or their notorious activities or both. Girls dancing, liquor flowing, cigarettes lighted, browbeat song and the don donning black shades with his charismatic personality impressing his close ones and intimidating his ‘dushmans’ is what is shown in these movies. 

But the bottom line is that, the gangsters on whom these are based are criminals involved in numerous murders, kidnappings, smuggling and even terrorist activities. They have blood of many innocents on their hands. Showing their lives in movies in such light implicitly glorifies the daredevilry of such ‘much wanted’ criminals. Stressing on dialogues like ‘don ko pakarna mushkil hi nahin namumkin hain’ are satire on the whole country and its security forces. Although India has failed in getting hold of such underworld dons, quipping on India’s inability shouldn’t be entertained on the big screen. Showcasing them as heroes promotes the growing culture that good is bad and bad is good. Powerful characters shown can often make one desire for such status. But one should remind himself of the antisocial activities which these sociopaths use their power for. 

Any filmmaker has the complete right of expression through his/her film. But they should once spare a thought for the victims and their families whose lives have been unsettled by activities of men depicted in their ‘don’ movies. These gangsters who are well settled outside India enjoy immunity from arrest due to various reasons. Getting to know about such films further mocks the image of India in their minds.

There are numerous inspirational stories and lives which can be portrayed in films. India has seen many heroes in various fields. Many of them are unsung and forgotten. Sharing their life in form of a biopic does justice to their good work. Recently the film Bhaag Milkha Bhaag based on Milkha Singh’s life was one of them. A good cast and a good filmmaking team can make a hit movie from such inspirational stories and simultaneously provide a much needed message to the society.

                                                    Please Bollywood don't shoot DON movies.