We are stuck with masks, social distancing even after vaccination and so adaptability will be the price of survival and to improve commerce with conscientious caution in all our activities. That means taking a hard look and accordingly modifying/changing all our lifestyles and traditions! We boast of being the largest Democracy in the world, government bulldozing and “enormously misusing” government agencies to impose draconian laws like UAPA, Sedition, NSA where intellectuals, educators, reporters, students, anyone these days can be arrested by a generally pliant police and locked up without trial or entitled to bail! There were checks and balances to ensure all that is enshrined in our Constitution. How did we permit our elected representatives to go from being our employees paid from the Public Exchequer to become our Rulers? Some people sell their souls to the devil for power to divide, enrich and raise themselves above us and the law and as VIPs, which cannot prosecute them without their permission and short circuit checks and balances to do “social engineering” and intrude into our personal rights/liberty” Where are the four pillars? They seem to have all merged into one! Most media are routinely not only pandering to government propaganda but actively covering up for them.
This is not something government would like to hear, but is the perception of a large section of society among them farmers, those against CAA, government prejudiced policies brought into force not democratically discussed, generally keeping parliament and the courts out and greatly wanting in transparency and accountability in governance! The targeted Opposition is decimated.The Supreme Court mercifully ruled that privacy is a basic right, but unfortunately is eroded in practice. Whither justice reviving TADA, POTA as enhanced terrorist laws but employed to muzzle democracy. Besides sharp critique of bad laws hope SC now modifies/strikes them down! That the government is least interested in our privacy protection is seen in the Privacy Data Protection Bill submitted to Parliament in 2019 which reportedly has been diluted and languishing with a Parliamentary Committee.
If you enjoyed reading this article, you can help support our journalism by adding OHeraldo as a preferred source.
The government is making rules giving it enormous and unchecked powers so social media and the public are completely at its mercy. Even the UN Special Rapporteurs have informed our government that the current forms of IT rules relating to social media do not conform to international human rights norms, but any criticism from anywhere is unwelcome by our government that wants to be the sole guardian deciding what is permitted and social media giants also want control of our private data for commercial use. Social media has been a great boon to NGOs and good Samaritans doing the government job in Covid relief! The hate speeches of this government’s politicians in particular which are most inflammatory are OK but not any criticism which is sought to be criminalised.
Who is accountable for all the money spent recklessly from the public exchequer, the unfettered VIP syndrome? For example President Kovind was given a special train from Delhi to Kanpur his native place in UP to interact with school acquaintances and those in his early years of social service! “Whataboutery” for all wrongs is justified like mentioning ex President Kalam also went by train (to attend official “Passing out Parade” at IMA) or misquoting some wrong precedent! Traffic was held up for Kovind in Kanpur resulting in a Covid patient woman’s death unable reach hospital in time!
The millions of Covid deaths and resulting trauma cannot be swept under the carpet! No one in government is discussing accountability or judicial enquiries into poor handling of pandemic, vaccine procurement shortages/delay, oxygen and ventilator bungles and wrong record of actual figures of deaths, all with impunity.
To rectify matters/deflect blame the PM has sacked the Union Ministers of Health, Law and IT, Information Broadcasting and Environment revamping central government with 77 ministers with social engineering and elections in mind, 42% declared criminal cases and 90% crorepatis! The crucial Finance Ministry is not revamped! CM Yogi is praised by the PM for second wave Covid handling ignoring floating bodies in the Ganga and mass pyres on the shores etc! People’s issues need immediate action with greater priority namely police and administrative reforms; massive unemployment and financial hardship, digital divide and access to justice for the masses, education imbroglio, rules that stifle our privacy and liberty, soaring prices of essentials, unsustainable development and no end to this VIP culture! So despite dismal economic slowdown with consequent painful exodus and trauma of migrant workers, job scenario, vaccination mess, insensitivity to farmer’s agitation, inhumanity of criminal justice system where even an eighty four old Fr Stan Swamy with severe medical conditions can be cruelly denied bail leading to his death in hospital in custody, great financial divide causing much pain etc, all do not seem to matter during elections! A lie doesn’t become truth, wrong right and evil doesn’t become good just because it is accepted by a majority. It is worse if people are treated as terrorist when attempting to democratically fight what they perceive as state terrorism. All Indians need to honestly introspect, examine own conscience; change what is not right to promote a decent, honorable, trustworthy, humane, happy and prosperous India! Politicians realise that finally more supreme than the Supreme Court is the court of own conscience. Be careful its verdict is in your favour!
(The author is a retired naval officer, freelance writer resident in Porvorim)
