The Grand rape of democracy

Whenever and whoever gets chosen as the next captain of this ailing ship, would be called the Prime Minister of India, post the April elections. The morning would start with the conventional national address by our leader, followed by yet another set of promises, which would emphasize on rural development and uplift of the downtrodden. Ironically 10% of India would not be able to witness the Prime Minister’s patriotic rhetoric owing to power cuts across the nation. Another 40% would miss it again owing it to their inability to purchase a television set.
But it’s the thought that counts, isn’t it? The feeling of being a proud citizen of a sovereign democratic republic overwhelms any of such trivial blockages in witnessing a national address. Afterall we are independent, our fundamental rights allow us to travel anywhere we wish to, pursue any career we want to and practice any religion we want to!

The country is currently reeling under a severe terror threat , with airports resembling fortresses and the men in uniform outnumbering passengers at railway station. The government is prepared as always and so is the common man on the street who knows he will be at the receiving end of any onslaught by the mercenaries.
Why do we get attacked anyway ? The Indian troops have never even ventured into a rogue state like Iraq or Afghanistan , as they have been too busy fighting a proxy war on our on soil anyways. So what makes India a dartboard for several terror preachers? Why can ULFA and NSCN strike with impunity anywhere and at anytime and proliferate an agenda as well, while the govt. constitutes one task force after another to tackle the menace.

The biggest nationalists , patriots and our leaders have always taken immense pride in the country’s cultural diversity, which undoubtedly is a unique feature of the second most populous nation in the world.
After thorough analysis and observation, the same cultural diversity has lead to a severely intolerant society during the last decade. The acceptance of separate cultures has taken a beating in areas of exclusive dominance by a community. Terms like ‘communally fragile ‘ have been associated with several towns and cities across India.

How did an Independent India take this discourse from its road to supremacy ?

We might choose to ignore it but when the terror is right in your backyard, it is no longer a story in the newspaper. The suspect list for most of the terror attacks contains names of scores of young men from the minority community. Why does a citizen of this country does not feel like one, what compels him to take up arms against his own countrymen, and what satisfaction does he derive from all the mayhem he creates at the cost of hundreds of civilian lives?

The answer to these questions lies within, the truth that we witness but choose not to acknowledge. The hate games that are being sponsored in this country by the power hungry politicians post independence have been on an all time high in the last 20 years.

The consistent neglect of the poorer section of the country and the lack of will to address their problems have led to the naxalite movement, whose area of influence now ranges from Andhra Pradesh to Jharkhand.
The complete ignorance of sections and communities can be gauged by the fact that, inspite of being 7 different states, the entire group is just North-East to us. How many of us can name all these states with their capitals? And how often do they make top national news?
This stature of lesser importance is based on the fact that people there have major cultural differences when compared to the mainland states like UP and Haryana.

None of us would ever even think of considering UP, Haryana, Rajasthan and Punjab to being referred as just North!

Only lately after the persistent violence in the North East, people from mainland started identifying these states separately. Even then the common notion is that ,the entire north east is disturbed.
But as the age old saying goes, every cloud has a silver lining. 59 years of Independence and mismanagement in running the country has given birth to a new breed of people, which is non-vociferous but sizeable.
They believe in peace, hope and pledge to distance itself from trivial hatred fuelling issues and rather want to stick to development of self as well as the nation.

All this while when the Naxalite menace was on the rise, the bombs went off in markets and politicians were entangled in one scam after another, this breed was unfazed and kept working towards a better nation. The men and women who instead of crying hoarse over the state of affairs, decided to make a difference and worked hard to make this country a better place to live in.

The silver lining is visible now, after three decades of below average progress, the country's economy grew at 6 percent a year from 1980 to 2002 and at 7.5 percent a year from 2002 to 2006 , making it a formidable global player well as one of the world's best-performing economies for the quarter century. Meanwhile, population growth rate subsided from 2.2 percent a year to 1.7 percent at present thereby boosting the per capita income, from $1,178 to $3,051 (in terms of purchasing-power parity) since 1980. India is now the world's fourth-largest economy. Soon it will surpass Japan to become the third largest.

All this seems non-sense to a person who is still worried about vehicle-clogged roads, corrupt politicians and rising taxes. A change in the perception is what would make all the difference - The roads are vehicle clogged because people can afford cars now, the taxes are rising but so is the income but the lesser said about the politicians the better. When were they supposed to be clean anyway!

All these years of independence have not gone in vain afterall, the exuberance and dedication of the men and women who have been instrumental in bringing about this change is clearly evident from the results now. Team India is a force to reckon with, our education is considered one of the best and our religious tolerance despite being scarred continues to set an example for the global community.
Who are these people who have been working hard all this while, undeterred and consistent in their strive for a better India? The people to whom differences based on caste, community and race do not make sense.

My salute goes out to you my fellow countrymen, my brothers and sisters who have worked hard inspite of the setbacks and testing times.

On this occasion of India's yet another grand display of its democratic prowess, lets give ourselves a reason to cheer and root for the country we were born in. Jai Hind!