Are we living in a democracy ?
This is the meaning of democracy as per dictionary.com,
"The principles of social equality and respect for the individual within a community"
After 58 years of independence, modern India still cannot be considered as a true democracy. Two stories that have been doing the rounds in newspapers and media have added fuel to this fire, the anti-quota protests and the Aamir Khan controversy. There are bound to be people on both sides, but this is what I have to say on the quota issue;
The reservation for backward castes was brought into the nation's constitution as an exceptional clause only and was to be followed only for 15 years. Those years have long since gone by and politicians have made merry, indulging themselves in vote-bank politics. I am not against reservation. What I am against is the fact that this government is hell bent on dividing the country on caste lines, thus tearing the social fabric apart and giving rise to tension in communities co-habited by people of all castes.
Reservation should be purely based on the economic condition of the applicant. The government should come up with a framework for discussion in the parliament for the implementation of this type of reservation. Let us do away with caste-based reservation which has plagued our country for decades. The really needy people dont get the benefits of this reservation anyway. I can only look at these pro-quota protesters and laugh at them. They say,"We are inferior, we dont match up, we need help". Look, if Abraham Lincoln thought like that, being a black, he would never have become the president of America. This government is using the Britishers' policy of divide and rule. The Congress, for decades has called itself a secular party, but now it realises that it cannot carry on this image any longer. If at all Congress loses power in the next general elections, it will be largely due to the quota controversy. Actually, if I wanted to vote now, I cant decide who is the least worst; the Congress or the BJP ?
The Aamir Khan story is another example of how our narrow-minded politicians wouldnt mind picking up on even an accomplished actor to gain points and publicity. All he did was ask for rehabilitation of affected villagers due to the construction of the Sardar Sarover dam. He just said what the supreme court had said, and in no way was he involved with the Narmada Bachao Andolan. Arent we allowed to express our opinion ? Does that come with a condition too, that we have to abide by the interests of our power hungry politicians ? Why did the BJP ask for a complete ban on his film, Fanaa ? If people dont want to see it, then let it be, but why a total ban ? I am at a loss of reason.
In fact we should learn by looking at Nepal. Their newly-formed democratic government has unanimously passed a legislation that stipulates 33% reservation for women in the parliament. Our very own reservation bill for women is stagnating for decades. Now that the quota protests are raging such fire, its the right time for women across the country to join arms and agitate for pressurising the goverment into passing the bill.
"The principles of social equality and respect for the individual within a community"
After 58 years of independence, modern India still cannot be considered as a true democracy. Two stories that have been doing the rounds in newspapers and media have added fuel to this fire, the anti-quota protests and the Aamir Khan controversy. There are bound to be people on both sides, but this is what I have to say on the quota issue;
The reservation for backward castes was brought into the nation's constitution as an exceptional clause only and was to be followed only for 15 years. Those years have long since gone by and politicians have made merry, indulging themselves in vote-bank politics. I am not against reservation. What I am against is the fact that this government is hell bent on dividing the country on caste lines, thus tearing the social fabric apart and giving rise to tension in communities co-habited by people of all castes.
Reservation should be purely based on the economic condition of the applicant. The government should come up with a framework for discussion in the parliament for the implementation of this type of reservation. Let us do away with caste-based reservation which has plagued our country for decades. The really needy people dont get the benefits of this reservation anyway. I can only look at these pro-quota protesters and laugh at them. They say,"We are inferior, we dont match up, we need help". Look, if Abraham Lincoln thought like that, being a black, he would never have become the president of America. This government is using the Britishers' policy of divide and rule. The Congress, for decades has called itself a secular party, but now it realises that it cannot carry on this image any longer. If at all Congress loses power in the next general elections, it will be largely due to the quota controversy. Actually, if I wanted to vote now, I cant decide who is the least worst; the Congress or the BJP ?
The Aamir Khan story is another example of how our narrow-minded politicians wouldnt mind picking up on even an accomplished actor to gain points and publicity. All he did was ask for rehabilitation of affected villagers due to the construction of the Sardar Sarover dam. He just said what the supreme court had said, and in no way was he involved with the Narmada Bachao Andolan. Arent we allowed to express our opinion ? Does that come with a condition too, that we have to abide by the interests of our power hungry politicians ? Why did the BJP ask for a complete ban on his film, Fanaa ? If people dont want to see it, then let it be, but why a total ban ? I am at a loss of reason.
In fact we should learn by looking at Nepal. Their newly-formed democratic government has unanimously passed a legislation that stipulates 33% reservation for women in the parliament. Our very own reservation bill for women is stagnating for decades. Now that the quota protests are raging such fire, its the right time for women across the country to join arms and agitate for pressurising the goverment into passing the bill.
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