Baba and the plight of my people
“A patriot must always be ready to defend his country against his government.”
-Edward Abbey
I have seen ‘Baba’ Ramdev only on televisions and newspapers flocked by numerous followers devouring on the mumbo-jumbo and trying weird ‘asans’. My eyes always catch a fleeting glance of him whenever I come across the channel which airs his yoga sessions while flicking through the whole paraphernalia of entertainment the cable TV provides. I have heard he is harboring political ambitions and may want to form a party of his own. I have heard that he has amassed a lot of wealth; now he even owns an island!
I don’t practice yoga. I work for an MNC leading a quite sedentary lifestyle with a healthy appetite of alcohol every weekend and junk food almost every day. The problem is I am in habit of reading newspapers.
With eye-popping scams hitting the headlines at such humongous pace; I shift uncomfortably in my chair while going through the numbers. F***, with people becoming billionaires at such speed; how can I be happy with my double figure salary. Where is my share of pie? I feel left behind in the ‘India Shining’ story.
And then the doorbell rings. Our ‘bai’ has arrived to do the chores. To sweep, wash and clean the dishes; the usual stuff. It’s time for me to shift again uncomfortably in my chair. With around 40% of people below poverty line in India, how could the rich and powerful in the country can be so corrupt. Mind you, 40% of people are earning less than meager 60/- per day. My starting salary after completing my graduation was almost 800/- per day. Today, I comfortably earn more in a day than what the 40% of my people earn in a month and yet I am feeling left out in the ‘India Shining’ story. I have my investments, my insurances and a future to look for. I still think about the cost of living in a metro in India and forget that my ‘bai’ lives in the same city.
A torrent of scams hitting the floor and 40% of my people erased from the memory forever.
I will hereby refer to facts and won’t parry away to conjectures.
The Jat agitation: Not so long ago, an agitation for reservation happened near Delhi. They hijacked the railway tracks for a month for their demands. Numerous trains were late or were cancelled. The country’s infrastructure was taken hostage and millions of people suffered. The Government didn’t mumble a word against the agitation for a month after which peaceful negotiations took place and the protest was called off. No use of force was done against the protestors.
Bhatta-Parsaul incident: The farmers protested against the acquisition of their land for development. The State Government sent police forces who tried to brutally suppress the protest. This was followed by visit of Central Government unofficial emissaries who condemned the use of force and asked the state government to resort to peaceful measures. Mr Gandhi even visited the Prime Minister with the farmers to address their woes.
Baba Ramdev Satyagrah: Everybody knows how he asked the Government for written promises, how the Ministers bend their backs to appease him, how they tried to divide the people in factions of ‘honest’ Anna and ‘politically ambitious’ Baba and how when everything failed, they scattered the mob by brutal lath charge and tear gas shells. ‘Saam Daam Dand Bhed’, an old principle still holds the fort. I went to a gathering in support of Anna Hazare’s fast. Thank God, I am not such a great fan of Baba.
What are the principles guiding the Government to react in such different ways to popular protests? Where a peaceful gathering of followers who are giving away day’s meal in premises which was booked for a month get the brutal repression, an illegal hijacking of the country’s property which results in loss of millions to the government coffers and lots of suffering to the passengers is pacified by a month long deliberation and cajoling.
It’s now time for conjectures.
The Jat agitation: With a firm belief in vote bank politics, the Government couldn’t have done much against the protestors. With no backbone in place, they couldn’t resort to forceful action as it might have resulted in loss of few seats in the election due to wrath of Jats even if it resulted in inconvenience to millions. The Government chose to remain passive to the plight of my people than using means to disperse an illegal protest. (The writer has nothing against the Jats but is not a supporter of such kind of protests)
Bhatta-Parsaul incident: With the probability of coming back to power in Uttar Pradesh dwindling year after year, the Government tried to use the incident for political mileage. Though the State Government might not be correct in their means to suppress the protest, the Central Government instead of issuing directives, tried to cash in on the situation using the charisma and lineage of a Gandhi. The protest was bought to a ridiculous end with TV footage of few farmers lamenting before the Prime Minister and a spate of promises. Job well done. The state Government is a villain, Rahul Gandhi is a Hero and the farmers, mere puppets, are still nursing their wounds waiting for justice.
Baba Ramdev Satyagrah: There was nothing illegal with the protest. With Anna’s fast against corruption still fresh in people’s memory, the Government saw the satyagrah as storm brewing. Unless killed in its infancy, it might have led to popular protests throughout India which the Government might find too hard to suppress. There was also the possibility of Anna and Baba uniting. So, however morally good the demands were and however peaceful the means applied were, the government was hell bent to prevent the protest from gaining momentum.
From the promise of bringing back the black money in 100 days to reluctance shown in passing Lokpal Bill and meting out such treatment on a peaceful gathering crowned with series of scams; the Government has shown its inadequacy and inefficiency to act on behalf of the people. Our honest Prime Minister who has done nothing except being a mute spectator to the charade and now has gone a step further by defending the action against Baba Ramdev’s rally is only strengthening the view of a spineless Government. The unofficial spokesperson who jump on their seats and propose ‘Zero loss theory’ for the 2G scam seem to be no different from the touts in Chandni Chowk. And far from this reality, the Prime Minister-in-waiting Mr Gandhi might be enjoying his lunch in a far-off village in Uttar Pradesh trying to create a vote bank. Owing to our own divides based upon caste, creed, region and our belief in charisma, it might be easier to appease us by sharing our food rather than doing anything significant. Such a nice young foreign educated fellow in spotless white kurta having lunch in a jhuggi is a spectacle to watch. Only words, no work.
The awe is giving way to despair. May be it’s time to convert the despair into anger. 40% of my people may not be able to read this article but as our politicians have shown time and again, it’s easier to incite an empty stomach and there are other ways to do it. May be it’s time to use their weapon against them.
“A patriot must always be ready to defend his country against his government.”
-Edward Abbey
