January 23, 2012
All the piles of road metal that have been occupying the sides of our housing colony begin to find relief. Loud, smoky, hot road tarring commenced this morning. Few days earlier a flux board had been erected with the faces of the Chief Minister and couple of other local politicians acknowledging them for allocating a very precise 7 digit amount for the road project. Seeing such an accurate number down to the last rupee, one would think there is absolutely flawless book-keeping practiced by the Indian administration. To see such an announcement about the folks in charge, one would think we live in a monarchy or feudal system where the "welfare" is at the benevolence of the rulers!
Around 30 workers, men and women have been sweating it out since the morning. Hopefully this exercise will ensure that the new 'coat' over the road will last till the next rain!
There has been a lot of fuss about the non-visit of Salman Rushdie to the Jaipur Literary Festival. He was there in 2007 and has been to Indian numerous times after the infamous Iranian fatwa, but suddenly now there is lot of "religious hurt" resurfaced thanks to it being the election time. And since election is round the corner, the already flexible backbone of the ruling party is much more oiled up.
There is much hue and cry over the assault on freedom of expression, holding creativity hostage, meek submission to religious fanaticism etc. The noise is a little more this time than with the nearly identical case of M. F. Hussein because at that time it wasn't a minority sentiment that was hurt.
The fuss about Rushdie's visit is similar to the fuss about Sibal's apparent assault on the internet or Katju's frequent tirades against the media. Making a fuss is the birthright of every Indian. People who are making the fuss are fully aware nothing is going to change for them at a personal level.
Hilariously, the majority of the voices being heard against the Rushdie debacle are concerned about how this damages India's image in the world's eyes. The same folks are pretty pleased that the news about the dead bodies of dirt poor, deserted widows in Vrindavan being chopped up and thrown into the Yamuna river, hasn't been widely circulated. Such news is readily explained away by the excuse of 'big and diverse country'. But inexplicably there is the expectation that a democratically elected coalition government and a parliament of politicians from such a 'big and diverse country' will behave in the most upright and courageous manner!
Some of the Indian writers genuinely believe that if they weigh in on the Rushdie matter, it will somehow bestow a quality on their work by association. This delusion is simply an upgraded version of the escapist, vicarious pleasure that Bollywood movie opulence provides the slum-dweller for three hours in the darkness of the theater. It doesn't take a genius to figure out how one manages to be a "popular writer" in such a society. So the statement from "popular writer" Chetan Bhagat that Rushdie could have avoided writing 'offensive' material is understandable. I have read Rushdie and Bhagat. I am not sure if the religiously and politically correct Bhagat believes in rebirths, but if he does, he can hope to write a few sentences like Rushdie seven births down the line. Hope is eternal.
Salman Rusdhie has every right to write whatever he wants. The Deoband school has every right to be fully offended at their convenience by what he writes. The government of India has every right to ensure that there is communal harmony in the country. But policing against disharmony should be a minor undertaking compared to the promotion of harmony. There is any hope for communal harmony if and only if it is an ingrained value and not something that breaks down at the sight of a poster on facebook.
To ensure such a harmony, a generation should be brought up on the values of absolute equality and coexistence with diverse opinion, on real or imaginary matters.
But that's just too much of a policy change to ask for from leaders who simply continue the colonial mantra of divide and rule and are elected on the basis of castes, cults and religions...
Too much to expect in a society where schools are run by educational trusts that are proud to associate with their own particular imaginary sub species of mankind...
Too much to seek from parents who insist that religion and caste are twin pillars of 'identity' for their kids!
Trickling down policy is always absurd, be it about prosperity as imagined by America's far right or about the open-mindedness that some assume governmental enforcement can bring about in India.
Congratulations to the Kerala team that won the 15th championship in a row at the National School Sports Meet. What the kids from down south shines further when one considers the kind of weather in which they performed compared to the climate they trained under!
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