Digital India requires the participation of foreign investors, both by way of funding and their physical presence, and the Dadri incident is hardly likely to appeal to the likes of Angela Merkel whose main concern would be safety of the work environment; their interest in cows would be confined to the quality of beef they provide.
A supposed “illegality” precipitated the lynching of a human being, a brutal attack on his son and destroyed his home. Even if he had broken the law by slaughtering a cow, surely he was entitled to a fair trial and due process of law which is quite clear on the quantum of punishment. Nothing in this world can justify this horror; and to attempt to explain the actions of the mob on religious grounds is indeed an insult to the religion itself. Equally incredible is the attempt at justification by so-called “holy” sadhvis and maharajas; the very individuals who have been elected to be law makers! And fruitcakes like Khattar should realize that 70% of India’s people are meat eaters; with beef eaters like me among them, who have no intention of leaving this country. So he can go fly a kite along with the Sharma’s and the Som’s.
Heinous incidents occur the world over, but condemnation by concerned leaders is swift. Obama’s reaction to the numerous shootings was immediate; the attacks on Sikhs met with instant outrage. The Norwegian PM led thousands in protest against the racially motivated stabbing of Hermansen, an African Norwegian. His message was clear, “This is not our way”. What set the Dadri incident apart was the prolonged silence of a leader who owed it to the nation to speak out. He eventually did, displaying more impotence than indignation. This impotence stems from the fact that he and his ministers are shackled to the whims and fancies of the RSS; reporting like school boys on their performance, to a totally unconstitutional authority. The high offices they hold were demeaned by reducing themselves to glorified messenger boys.
Modi’s silence can have a number of explanations; it may indicate secret approval of what happened (remember his refusal to accept a cap from a Muslim). Or it may suggest his oratorical skills were suppressed by his RSS masters; a third explanation maybe that he lacks the courage of his convictions to speak his mind in the interests of the country. Whatever the truth, and notwithstanding his hypocritical sobs at the Facebook campus, it merely indicates that he is unfit to lead this country; much less put it on the road to prosperity and leadership in digital technology.
The issue of sanctity of cows will not be dealt with here. The sacred texts, the writings of the Rigveda, the practices of the Vedic people are all a matter of record establishing the irrationality of dogmatic views on cow slaughter for nutrition. The cow debate also originates in the Constitution of India, which contrary to misrepresentations made, does not forbid cow slaughter; it merely issues principles of state policy. “The state shall endeavor to organize agriculture and animal husbandry on modern and scientific lines and shall, in particular, take steps for preserving and improving the breeds, and prohibiting the slaughter of cows and calves and other milch and draught cattle”. In other words it is a suggestion, a directive principle, not a law. In 1959, the Supreme Court allowed the killing of cows after the age of 16, because fodder and resources were scarce and older cows had to make way for more productive younger ones. In 2005, the SC reversed this with an amusing judgment. “It cannot be accepted that bulls and bullocks become useless after the age of 16 because till the end of their lives they yield excreta in the form of urine and dung which are extremely useful for the production of gas and manure…5 tonnes of dung and 343 pounds of urine per bullock per year, which can help in the manufacture of 20 cartloads of composted manure”. Digital India We Have Arrived!!
The right wing loonies should learn a lesson or two from history which is replete with examples of failed attempts to subjugate a people. In spite of burning crosses, lynching’s and torching of Black homesteads, the Klu Klux Klan failed to establish White supremacy; failed so miserably that today the US has a president from that very same community. In spite of killing 6 million, the Nazi brown shirts failed to eliminate the Jews. Replacing brown shirts with khaki shorts is not going to make a blind bit of difference. Even Stalin’s gulags could not stop the Berlin wall from crumbling; and Pol Pot is remembered most for his insane policies. Bear in mind, these engines of Man’s inhumanity to Man were far more efficient than the khaki shorts brigade. All that has happened in India with the murder of Akhlaq and intellectuals like Kalburgi, Pansare and Dabholkar is that the country is polarized not along religious lines but between those who believe in freedom and those who do not. And the sooner the BJP and its RSS henchmen realise this, the better for the country.
(Dr Gladstone D’Costa is the Chairman, Accreditation Committee and member, Executive Committee, Goa Medical Council)
