As a father, I am aware of the internal turmoil which all parents have to undergo while bidding goodbye to their children after admitting them to college hostel! Amidst a feeling of joy that the child has got a platform to receive quality education, a gloom also descends upon the heart as he/she has left the nest by leaving memories in every corner.
Still parents try to stabilise themselves for the sake of the greater good of the children with silent prayer for their welfare.
Now what’s the definition of “goodness” which parents harbor for the child! It depends upon the social hierarchy of the family concerned! So for a set of parents, Oxford Cambridge Harvard remain the “dream destination” where they want to see their offspring! For another set, a “petty” dish-washer in a restaurant form the “ultimate destination” which they dream about their children!
But one aspect is absolutely common – – love affection emotion towards their children irrespective of social status, economy or family background! No wonder why Mini’s Bengali Bhadralok father felt the pain of the poor Afghan trader Rahmat on learning about his emotion towards the long unseen daughter back in Kabul (Rabindranath Tagore’s “Kabuliwala”)!
Did the parents of Swapnadeep raise their child with lot of love and sacrifice to send him to “gallows” ie hostel of Jadavpur University where his dream and the flame of life can be extinguished brutally by the Ragging-monsters!
Or the tragedy of the inconsolable parents of Abbachuddin Sheikh! Young son of a poor mason in rural West Bengal ! In this society where education need to be purchased from the market, the boy had to pursue masonry only to survive in this cruel environment! So when Abbachuddin got a window in far-off Chennai as a member of the masonry team from his village, his joy knew no bounds!
With much pleasure did Abbachuddin start for Chennai with the parting words to his father being “Abba, stay well. Pray that I do good in Chennai”! But he soon went beyond all boundaries of prayer with the Coromandel Express crushing at Bahanaga Odisha! Several months later the unrecognisable charred body of Abbachuddin got identified through DNA matching with the father bringing the body home!
Could the father of Swapnadeep or Abbachuddin ever dream during physical separation with their happy children in step of new life that they would next meet their son as corpse in bloodied or charred state!
Do the parents admit their children to the colleges to get physically abused by the brute “brilliant” students? The menace of ragging is indeed increasing by leaps and bounds. Far from awarding severe punishment to the offenders, they escape scotfree on most occasions. No wonder why the vulgar lot continue to torture innocent juniors without a bit of hesitation.
Also it must be asked which should be the greatest priority – – Flagging off high-end luxurious trains to play to the gallery or ensuring fool proof security to the trains with liberal investment in accident prevention technology and mass recruitment instead of wasting precious wealth in conquering Moon and erecting statues and temples!
On the dawn of 1st January 2023, did the parents of Swapnadeep and Abbachuddin envisage what the New Year is bringing in their lives! Of what use are such Universities which might feature in top rankings, but it’s students pass away due to Ragging! How can the resumption of train movement be “celebrated” with crude slogans of a particular ecosystem instead of remaining accountable to one of the greatest accidents of Indian railway history!
Will 2024 bring a bit of sanity in India where innocent souls do not have to meet their end through artificial developments of Ragging or Avoidable accidents, Riots and pogroms, Wars and battles. Else there lies hardly any significance to celebrate the incoming of a fresh New Year if it remains bereft of minimum humanity sensibility rationality and accountability!
