by Vidya Bhushan Rawat
The way Delhi police under the direct order of home minister Rajnath
Singh on the issue of 'anti national' activities being allowed inside
JNU Campus is shameful to say the least. The police arrested several
students and president of JNUSU Mr Kanhaiya Kumar has been charged
under section 124A, the charges of sedition.
These are difficult times. Student unrest is everywhere. After the
death of Rohit Vemula, the dirty casteist face of our campuses was
being exposed not just nationally but internationally. The government
and ruling party was on defensive on it. We know well that this
government only need Muslims, Pakistan, Kashmir, Nationalism, Cows,
Bharat Mata, Ganga to prove anybody as national or anti national.
It is important to understand how the campuses of those Universities
are being targeted where BJP's student wing has little presence. JNU
is under the target as student there have been in the forefront of all
the political movement. They have been demanding justice for Rohith
Vemula and solidarity with all the students who were victims of caste
oppression. While we may disagree with these diverse student groups
ideologically, the police action brings back memories of emergency
days. Shamelessly there is a hashtag being promoted to shut JNU. We
have to understand why is that the saffronites are so disturbed with
JNU, AMU and JMI. It is because these universities are considered to
be having different view than that of the saffron school of thoughts.
For the Sangh Parivar which only apologised to British to get out of
jail and hobnobbed with Indira Gandhi during emergency supporting all
the demolition of Turkmangate by Sanjay Gandhi, these campuses are the
hotbed of 'anti national' activities.
We should understand why is this government hell bent on destroying
our institutions where students have some freedom. I have said long
back that our universities are becoming primary schools where students
are not supposed to think independently but where Dronacharyas
penalise you for being different and dissenters.
In academic discussions, there will be many who will question a
certain act of state. These are healthy discussions. BJP and its
allied justify the killing of Mahatma Gandhi. After the government
came to power two books have remerged in the market which are Hitler's
Meinkeimpf and Nathuram Godse, the killer of Gandhi's ' Why I killed
Gandhi' ? Unsurprisingly, this government did not even bother to ask
its police and administration to arrest those who are glorifying the
killers of our 'father of nation'. On January 26th, this year, many of
the Hindu Mahasabha volunteers observed black day as reported in the
Hindu. No action has been taken against them.
The government and political parties should come out of the campuses.
Let the students decide and debate in their institutions. Ofcourse,
Universities and its administration has enough power to penalise and
punish a student if he or she violate the law. Would it not have been
proper to have appointed a team of professors to investigate the
matter and work on its recommendations. I am again saying,' are we
punishing our students for having a particular view point ? Can you
stop an idea ?
Yes, it is important for students to be careful in organising things.
There is nothing wrong in organising debate but need too understand
that only democratic voices be invited to the campuses and not those
who have no faith in democracy. As we have said many time, India's
constitution is our biggest protector and we have to protect it any
cost because those who do not have any faith in it are claiming its
legacy now.
We have seen from FTTI, Pune and IIT Madras, how the authorities
treated the student's dissent. Is this government unable to digest
diverse view points or they are highly unaware of the huge anti
brahmin movement in Tamilnadu led by Periyar. If he were alive today,
this government would have send him to jail.
The government has to answer why students are feeling restive. Dont
try to find pretext in curtailing the freedom of students and
suppressing activities in their campuses. Have they provided answer to
students in University of Hyderabad as what action are they taking.
Instead, they have promoted the Vice Chancellor for his action. It
clearly means that VCs will be promoted for such activities. What
happened to #OccypyUGC protest ? Has the government given any
direction as why the fellowships to students are not being provided ?
Why are students at Aligarh Muslim University and Jamia Millia Islamia
feeling disturbed and restive today. It is because the government want
to destroy these institutions under some pretext or others. The
removal of minority status of these institutions will crush the spirit
behind the building of these institutions which have produced
brilliant scholars and activists.
Haven't we seen how eminent journalist Siddhartha Vardarajan was
hounded out at Allahabad University when he visited there on the
invite of the Student Union there. He was not allowed to speak. The
ABVP leaders had earlier invited Gorakhpur's Member of Parliament
Adityanath to the campus which was met with fierce resistance from the
students.
India's nationhood and democracy can not be handed over to the police
and military. We are united not because a government want us but
because there is a common will of the people to stay together. It is
the people who are worried about what is happening in the country.
When a citizen of the country is tortured, killed, we express our
solidarity. As citizen of the country, we wish every one follow the
constitutional morality which is the only way to protect India's unity
and integrity. Unity does not come by attempting to impose north
Indian brahmanical values on every one. The concept of Hindi Hindu
Hindustan will only threaten our national integration. This is a huge
country which is actually subcontinent and differences and divergent
views are bound to happen.
At the time when we should be asking question as who has stolen our
money from the government banks as over one lakh fifty thousand crore
bad debt now ready to crumble Indian economy. The signs of warning are
already here as rupee continue to tumble further. Despite cheapest
crude oil prices we still are paying hugely without any question. The
elite defaulters are enjoying political protection while the farmers
are committing suicide to protect their families from harassment of
police and administrators.
The situation is grim yet there is no other way to fight
democratically as it democracy which is seriously under threat. If
campuses in universities are closed for socio political debates then
where are we going to have it ? How much time Parliament is giving for
constructive debates ? It means people will have to now start these
debates at Jantar Mantars of their cities and villages.
During emergency we always blamed 'sarkari media' for projecting
Indira Gandhi and ruling party while totally blacking out the news of
protests and dissent. Ironically, the paid corporate brahmanical media
today particularly the electronic channels have become the biggest
threat to Indian democracy as not just they are twisting the news to
suit the taste of their middle class upper caste crowd to satisfy
their egos but also organising media trial and trying to influence the
judiciary. Press Council of India and serious journalists and I can
say there are many particularly in print media should now think
seriously whether they can form a group and provide guidelines to
protect their institutions from mercenaries masquerading as
'nationalists'. We know very well that once you have managed media,
controlled academic institutions the social media will be targeted
which is the only frontier so far challenging the powerful
status-quoists as political parties have failed to rise above petty
political interests. It is time to rise above narrow confined mindset,
join hand, work on a common socio-economic-political agenda to meet
this threat to our freedom and liberty when our natural resources are
opened for corporate loot while we are being fed with high dose of
'nationalism'. Where is your nationalism when you sale our land and
our forest for petty sum to your corporate masters ? Will the
political parties and all of us who care for the country wake up and
join hands to defeat hate mongering communalists ?
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