Constitution Day of India, November 26

Constitution Day of India, November 26

Constitution Day of India is observed on November 26, the day the Constitution of India was finally ‘adopted, enacted and given to ourselves in 1949. Much water has flown in the Yamuna ever since the new constitution became operational, 73 years ago, on January

26, 1950; the day is observed and celebrated as the Republic Day of India, an important mile stone in the chequered journey of free India. It is a matter of gratification to note that ever since India has come a long way and has ‘arrived’ definitely but it has still to go a long way to ‘reach’ to redeem the pledge of ‘Tryst with Destiny’ which ‘We the people of India’ took on the mid-night dawn of August 15, 1947. I take this opportunity to greet my fellow citizens of India on the Constitution Day and wish them all success and prosperity in the years to come.

“We describe our Constitution as a “living document”, ready to adapt and respond to changing times. We also call our Constitution a “transformative Constitution”, one that attempts to radically transform our society and the country as a whole to fulfill its vision of a vibrant, modern polity. But how different is the vision of the framers of our Constitution from those in charge of implementing its ideals since the country gained Independence? Is the vision still a dream or a reality? And how do the citizens and the Constitution transform each other?” It is an extract from an invitational letter for a Webinar hosted by the Print on November 24 on the theme “Constitutional Vision: From Framers to Executors” to observe the Constitution Day. I tend to agree with the Print that our constitution is a living document and it is a transformative constitution so laboriously made by our forefathers, the makers of this beautiful document; particularly the chief architect of it, Babasaheb B.R. Ambedkar. The three questions raised by the Print are totally relevant which need answers to put the matter in its perspective.

I would humbly try to address the issues not as an expert but as a concerned citizen. First, the constitutional vision: from framers to executors – frankly, prima facie it seems, we have negated the vision of the framers and have failed the constitution. It is my off the cuff observation, if I see the things in totality. It seems in the past 73 years, we have increasingly lost the way. The framers of the constitution visualized India as a democratic, secular and socialist country. But we could not do much in transforming of our political democracy into a social and economic democracy. Our secular credentials are increasing threatened giving way to communal polarization. Over the years, rich is getting richer and poor is getting poorer, undermining the ideal of socialism. Fraternity was thoughtfully added to the known and lofty ideals of ‘Equality, Liberty and Justice’ but sadly again, in the recent years chasm in the various sections of the society has widened. Minorities are feeling threatened. It seems, social and religious animosity, in the society at large, is increasing. It was a short narration on the basic fundamentals of the constitution as stipulated in the very preamble of the constitution. As regards yet another prop of ‘transformative constitution’, I think, here also we have nothing much to feel proud. We could not transform our political democracy into social and economic one, as said earlier. The slogan of ‘Sab Ka Sath, Sab Ka Vikas and Sab Ka Vishwas’ is yet to be realized. The society is yet to be transformed from ‘graded inequality’ to a ‘casteless society’ to establish an equitable order, the very essence of democracy. Democracy will survive and prosper, if the institutions established under the constitutional framework, in the process, are strengthen. But again, it is felt, it has not happened and has lead us towards ‘Grammar of Anarchy’ and ‘Hero worship giving way to dictatorship’ as warned by Babasaheb Ambedkar in his last speech in the Constituent Assembly on November 25, 1949.  The ‘majoritarian’ point of view and the ‘personality cult’ are the very negation of democracy. Unfortunately, these tendencies are raising

their head, of late, in the polity of the country which must be arrested forthwith.  The constitutional and statutory positions like President, Governor, Election Commission, Comptroller General of Audit and Accounts, National Commission for SCs among others are increasingly losing their sheen and standing in facing the machinations of the ruling dispensations. It is a matter of concern and worry. The other day, commenting on the Election Commission, the Supreme Court of India termed it as ‘alarming trend’ and said, “This is how the silences of the constitution can be exploited. There is no law, no check. Everyone has used it to their interest… Pick up some one and give him a highly truncated tenure. He is obligated; does your bidding…We are not saying so but it looks like that.” It has been further reported that there is a definite ‘standoff’ between the Government and the Judiciary on the issue. It is a matter of worry that ‘political and constitutional morality’ is missing in implementing the constitution in its ‘letter and spirit’, most of the times by willful design by the vested interests.

All said and done, it is a matter of gratification to note that we are still on track only because of the constitution, in spite of many failures and setbacks, in the process. I would tend to agree that our constitution is a ‘living document’ and if, we the people of India ensure that the governments are made of ‘Gyansheel’ people, the constitution may be saved and defended. Kindly excuse me for repeatedly quoting Babasaheb in explaining the matter as I find him as relevant today as he was before. What is ‘Gyan’ and ‘Sheel’ according to the icon? He said, “If I may use the words of Buddha he said that man requires two things; one is ‘Gyan’ and the other is ‘Sheel’. Gyan without Sheel is very dangerous. It must be accompanied by Sheel by which we mean; character, moral courage, ability to be independent of any kind of temptation, truthful to ones ideals.” Our constitution is a living document; I say so because – In the early years of the Republic of India, it could throw answers to the often raised ‘bogie’ – Who after Nehru? It does not need further elaboration, Our PM passed away abroad and transfer of power back home happened smoothly. In the aftermath of ‘emergency’, declared rightly or wrongly, the strongest PM was unseated by the people and brought in the new dispensation without any difficulty. Two of the leaders, PM Indira Gandhi and Former PM Rajiv Gandhi were eliminated suddenly in violence; nothing happened and smooth switch over took place with due process and procedure. Unwanted and undesirable situations arose, in the wake of violent communal riots, militancy and such other untoward happenings; our

constitution stood the test of times as a ‘living document’. PM Narendra Modi has rightly said, “India's Constitution is not merely a book but is an idea and commitment, and also a symbol of the nation's confidence in its independence. Dwelling on the living nature of the Constitution, he said India has by nature been a free-thinking country, and inertia is not part of our basic nature. "From the formation of the Constituent Assembly to its debates, from the adoption of the Constitution to its present stage, we have consistently seen a dynamic and progressive Constitution. We have argued, raised questions, debated and made changes.”

Finally, if we carefully study and pay heed to the foresighted views and warnings of the father of Indian Constitution, Dr. B.R. Ambedkar, we can easily make the living document a ‘transformative constitution’ as visualized by our forefathers. He said referring to the newly won independence, “Will history repeat itself? It is this thought which fills me with anxiety. This anxiety is deepened by the realization of the fact that in addition to our old enemies in the form of castes and creeds we are going to have many political parties with diverse and opposing political creeds. Will Indians place the country above their creed or will they place creed above country? I do not know. But this much is certain that if the parties place creed above country, our independence will be put in jeopardy a second time and probably be lost forever. This eventuality we must all resolutely guard against. We must be determined to defend our independence with the last drop of our blood.”

 While observing the Constitution Day on November 26, again I would like to recall what Babasaheb said on the good or bad

constitution; particularly with reference to the gap between the Framers and Executors. In his speech, Ambedkar cautioned that the working of a Constitution did not depend on the document itself. Ultimately, it depended on those tasked with implementing it. He said, “…however good a Constitution may be, it is sure to turn out bad because those who are called to work it, happen to be a bad lot. However bad a constitution may be, it may turn out to be good if those who are called to work it, happen to be a good lot.”

Greetings on the Constitution Day of India.

 

 

EWS Reservation – A Cursory Analysis

 

EWS Reservation – A Cursory Analysis

The issue of reservation to the Economically Weaker Sections (EWS) of the society was recently in news and generated obvious debate and heat in the corridors of justice and power, news rooms, social outfits etc. It would happen to be, to my mind, a ‘game changer’ issue in the country; particularly with

regard to the socio-economic fabric of the society on one hand and socio-political polarization of the polity on the other in the years to come. My take on the issue is not that of an expert or academic but that of a layman as a concerned common citizen of India that is Bharat.

As we all know for centuries together, all most every avenue and opportunity was reserved for the socially and economically privileged upper crust of the society in the parlance of so called ‘Manuwadi” system. The outcastes (untouchables) and the Shudras (backward castes) were kept at the receiving end both by will and design by the privileged upper castes. Nobody raised any question of merit, poverty, equality and justice, Human considerations, we often tend to quote from our scriptures, were totally missing in dealing with the socially discarded and oppressed masses. The main stream of the society must have some introspection and realize the pain of this historic injustice amounting to dreadful cruelty meted out to the under-privileged. There is no need to go deep into the past and mention about the ‘Eklavyas’ and ‘Shambukas’ of ancient times. Let us come straight to the Bhakti Movement of the 15^th century – Kabir, Ravidass, Chokha Mela, Tuka Ram and the founder of Sikhism the great Guru Nanak came on the scene and stood for the human rights of the underprivileged, the first step to undo the injustice, meted out to the socially neglected and discriminated segments of the society on the basis of caste system ordained by the Chattur Varna of Hindus. The Sikh Gurus and Guru Granth Sahib, the holy scripture of the Sikhs, and the establishment of the Khalsa Panth by the 10^th Guru of the Sikhs, Guru Govind Singh followed by the social reforms of Narayana Guru in South India, Arya Samaj of Swami Daya Nand in North India, inter alia, played appreciable role in leveling the society one way or the other and definitely with some visible success. The situation came to head with the arrival of the likes of Joytiba Phule, Periyar E.V. Ramasamy, Bheem Rao Ambedkar among others in the contemporary times in the early 19^th century amidst liberal and democratic approaches of British rulers. Babasaheb Ambedkar underlined and flagged the social depression, oppression and systemic discrimination of depressed classes in the relevant fora including the Round Table Conferences held in London in early 1930s which resulted in the Ramsey MacDonald Communal Award of 1932 granting separate electorates to the depressed classes and recognized their distinct identity from the Hindus. Mahatma Gandhi, other Hindu leaders and the Congress Party

woke up and vehemently opposed the separate electorates to the depressed classes as demanded by Babasaheb Ambedkar and granted in the Communal Award. It was a turning point in the process of rights of the socially marginalized. Ambedkar was holding the fort representing dalits. Mahtma Gandhi resorted to his usual tactic of ‘Satyagraha’ and started his ‘fast unto death’ in Yerawada Jail in Pune (then Poona). Frankly, it was a sheer political blackmail as some political analysts see. The entire Hindu leadership led by Mahatma Gandhi and the Congress Party came together and appealed to Ambedkar to save the life of Mahatma Gandhi. Being a true nationalist to the core, Babasaheb, reluctantly, succumbed to the tremendous processor and wily designs of Mahatma Gandhi and signed some arrangements under the Poona Pact of 1932 to ensure due representation of dalits not only in the legislatures but also in services and educational institutions which later came to be called ‘Reservations’ first in 1935 and subsequently in the Constitution of India. I took the liberty of giving these details to call the bluff of the so called ‘main stream’ of the Hindu society or the ‘General Category’ who never get tired of shouting from the roof tops that dalits were given ‘Reservation’ by the act of ‘magnanimity’ and their own ‘volition’. Nobody gave Reservations to dalits on a platter. They got these concessions with the relentless struggle of Babasaheb Ambedkar and his associates.

With this background, let us come to the current issue of Reservation to the EWS. The concept of Reservation, as stipulated in the Constitution, recognizes socially and educationally marginalized communities and the facilities and additional weightage to them is given to ‘Empower’ them as an ‘affirmative action’ by the state with a view to built bridges and fill the vacuum for social cohesion and equitable order. Reservations are not given to fill the economic gap for poverty

amelioration. It is a fallacy being spread by the vested interests for electoral gains by polarizing the society – socially depressed Vs socially privileged, a dangerous and mischievous scheme of things. Who does not know that India is a poor country with millions of families living ‘Below Poverty Line (BPL)’? By government’s own admission, more than 80 crorer of our fellow citizens are being fed by the government under various schemes. In this scenario, where is the question of Reservations for the EWS? Moreover, is it not true that most of BPL families belong to Scheduled Castes/Tribes and Muslim communities? There is another lacuna which underlines the illogical approach of the government; the annual income for claiming scholarships by an SC student is two lakh but for the purposes of EWS, the income limit is 8 lakh. This fully justifies the thumb rule “Show me the face and I will show you the rule’. Kindly permit me to make a humble suggestion to empower the so called EWS in the ‘General Category’ that is the socially privileged. There should be at least 75% Reservation for the EWS in all the posts of ‘Safai Karamcharis’ including Gutter and Sewerage cleaners not only for the upper crusts of the caste ridden society but also the OBCs as caste bias and discrimination is also generally practiced by them too. It would be instrumental in bringing about the so called ‘spiritual experience’ to the higher echelons of the society.  Why the ‘spiritual experience’ be reserved only for the dalits?

All said and done, now let us revert to the ground reality. Reservations for the SCs and STs and also the OBCs are not a permanent provision and should not be so. There should be no hesitation in studying, assessing and retaining or modifying or abolishing these provisions with due, free and fair procedure, if required. But the upper castes and privileged or so called ‘General Category’ supported and encouraged by the vested political interests who are only interested in polarizing the society for electoral considerations are not interested in addressing the issue head-on. All political parties and social outfits like RSS and SGPC among others, willingly or otherwise, support reservations and keep on extending these temporary provisions even apart 75 years of independence. It seems there is no ‘political and social will’ to integrate the socially and educationally weaker sections with the main stream of the society to realize the lofty ideals of ‘Equality and Fraternity’ stipulated in the constitution. In this scenario, Reservations for SCs, STs and OBCs will remain as the society at large is still not ready to embrace the marginalized sections of the society because of historical compulsions of Manuwadi social system. It seems that Reservations for the EWS have been introduced by those vested interests who intend to ‘Eat the cake and have it too’. Reservations are not the answer to address poverty and safeguard security and integrity of our country. Nevertheless, I may say with great reluctance, if Executive, Legislature and Judiciary feel in their better consideration that Reservations are the only answer, why don’t

we fix the quota for all on the basis of their share in the demography? As of now, 59.5% are fixed – 27% for OBCs, 15% for SCs, 7.5% for STs and 10% foe EWS of General Category. What wrong has been done by the remaining 40.5%? They should also have their share in the pie. I leave it here as ‘Food for Thought’.

It is a matter of great concern and worry that our judicial system has further compounded the issue; it seems to a layman like me. The Supreme Court in a majority judgment of 3:2 in a 5 judge bench has upheld the Reservation for EWSs. It would further divide the polity and the society. The national parties like BJP and Congress have welcomed the court decision, bereft of political and constitutional morality, just to appease the Hindu main stream of the society. The regional parties like DMK, JDU, RJD among others, representing the lower strata of the society, have opposed the EWS Reservations. In an editorial, the Hindustan Times has rightly said, “With economic anxieties rising, reservations of various kinds are sure to emerge as political levers, straying even further from the lofty equality goals envisioned in the constitution.” Reservations for EWSs are totally unwarranted and unjustifiable and would tend to further fragment the society. Temporary Reservations for the SCs, STs and OBCs would automatically end when a ‘casteless’ society is in place. Nobody is interested in becoming a second class citizen any more by sticking to caste based reservations. But the governments, political parties and the society at large must act to empower the socially and educationally marginalized segments; the so called dalits. The sooner; the better.

I tend to fully agree with the observations of Hon’ble Judges Ravindra Bhat and U.U. Lalit who said in their dissenting notes, “This court has, for the first time in seven decades of the Republic, sanctioned avowedly exclusionary and discriminatory principle.”

 

Police DAV Public School – PDAV – Model-UN (PDAVMUN)

 

Police DAV Public School – PDAV – Model-UN (PDAVMUN)

On November 11, I have had the honour to visit Police DAV Public School at Jalandhar, A Temple of Excellence – one of the best schools in the Doaba region of Punjab. It was one of my earnest

wishes, ever since I came back to my roots in Jalandhar after a long diplomatic career, which was realized and would remain with me as a cherished memory in the coming years. As Mirza Ghalib said ‘Rang layegi Hamari Fakamasti Ek Din’, Principal of the School, Dr. Rashmi Vij, educational and cultural excellence personified, thoughtfully invited me to be the Chief Guest and Key Note Speaker at one of important events of the School – PDAVMUN which I, obviously, accepted with pleasure. I had met Dr. Rashmi Vij and her worthy husband Sunil Vij, a highly placed professional Executive in private sector at a couple of social occasions and briefly interacted with them. As a highly alert and competent educational administrator, Rashmi Vij remembered me and my professional background and provided me an opportunity to further educate myself. Thanks a lot Madam Principal Rashmi Vij.

Let us talk about PDAVMUN. Keeping with its standing, Police DAV Public School regularly hosts this UN motivated and promoted event.  This year was the 4^th Chapter in which more than 400 delegates from about 25 schools in the northern region of India participated in a 3 day conference; the opening plenary session of

which was a befitting kick start of PDAVMUN. The function fully justified which I read in an elegant publication of the School; the Suragini – 25^th Anniversary Edition, a copy of which was kindly gifted to me by Principal Rashmi Vij. British Council in its commendatory recognition rightly described the School as an institution with “an outstanding development of international learning in the curriculum”.  The School has established its contacts and exchanges with many countries like Sweden UK, South Korea, inter alia. On alighting from the car, I could feel the pleasant ambience of the well maintained clean campus and premises of the School. I was received by the Coordinators of PDAVMUN, Balwinder Singh, Manoj Dutta and Seema Sharma,  very courteous and well trained teachers, and ushered me to the elegantly and meaningfully furnished office of Principal Rashmi Vij for a courtesy meeting over tea and refreshments along with other two educational administrators in the DAV fraternity; Principal Anita Nanda of Lala Jagat Narain DAV Memorial School and Principal S.K.  Gautam of Dayanad Model School. The personal touch in hospitality and demeanour of Principal Rashmi Vij was very impressive to register her persona as I had heard about her humane personality otherwise too. One may consider these minor details superfluous but I have no hesitation in saying that Rashmi Vij is not only an acclaimed academic and educational administrator but also a human being par excellence. These qualities of head and heart have made Police DAV Public School one of the premier educational institutions. In her assertions in the Suragini – Changing Societal Perspective Towards School Education: Time To Clean The Lens, she has aptly quoted John Adams, “The purpose of Education is two- fold, one is to teach how to make a living and the other how to live.” Indian education system, to my mind, still needs to go a long way in this regard.

PDAVMUN plenary began with the traditional DAViet drill of Sarswati Vandhana, Lighting of the Lamp followed by the substantive part of the function. Principal Rashmi Vij in her welcome remarks informed that PDAVMUN remained an important event in the calendar of the School which tended to educate and prepare the

young delegates for their much needed international exposure. She was confident that the 4^th Chapter has thoughtfully introduced new aspects like the Punjab Legislative Assembly, Terrorism, and Kashmir issue among others for the benefit of young students. In my key note address without going into the history of the UN said that India being one of the founding member of UNO, even before her independence, has been an active and vocal member of the world body and rightly so. Referring to the sterling contribution of Hansa Mehta, a Gandhian, to the Declaration of Human Rights and Vijay Lakshmi Pandit as President of the UNGA in 1953 and more recently Shashi Tharoor as Assistant Secretary General  said that India was fully involved and integrated with the UN System to execute and carry forward the UN Agenda of – international peace, socio-economic development, equitable world order through the mechanism of UN Millennium Goals and SDGs in keeping with the cardinal dictum of India’s foreign policy inspired by ‘Vashudaiv Kutumbkum’.  Mentioning about the ‘Soft and Cultural Diplomacy’ of India, I informed the young delegates that yet another proposal to declare April 14, birthday of Dr. B.R. Ambedkar, as International Day of

Equality under the aegis of UN was resting with the Government of India and UN Secretariat and solicited all out support to the proposal as it would amount to one more feather in the turban of India in addition to Mahatma Gandhi’s birthday, 2^nd October, as International Day of Non-violence and International Yoga Day. Mentioning the appreciable activity of the School in arranging PDAVMUN, I said that UN thoughtfully introduced the programme of M-UN in the year 2000 for ‘educational simulation in which students can learn about diplomacy, international relations and the UN’. I added that UN offered many opportunities to work under the System like; UN Career, UN Volunteers, UN Academic Impact to foster the engagement of universities and colleges as stake holders and urged young students to look at these career choices in due course. Commenting on the efficacy and functioning of the UN, I said that with the changed and fast evolving international scenario, UN has lost its steam and required urgent and immediate restructuring and expansion to address the challenges of the future. India being a large country and the largest democracy of the world and also one of fastest growing economies must get due role and space including a permanent seat on the ‘Horse Shoe’ high table at the UN in New York. India fully fits the bill. I also added as a matter of satisfaction that India had arrived with ‘pragmatic and assertive’ foreign policy not only to fully safeguard our national interests but also be a dignified member of the comity of nations for mutually beneficial and accommodative  world order under the leadership of PM Narendra Modi and EAM S, Jaishankar.  My concluding shot to caution the delegates was that since, in diplomatic parlance, foreign policy of any country was an extension of its internal strength, we the people of India must insure that India remained on rails for our internal strength and progress as a multi-racial, multi-cultural and inclusive polity and society. The programme was inter-spread by cultural inputs like fusion music, dance and songs by the School Talent. Little Master, Vinay of 2^nd Standard and Sa-Re-Gama fame, stole the show by leading the group song welcoming the Guests. The mock exercise of one of UN Committees staged by the delegates to PDAVMUN was good and duly demonstrated the appreciable efforts of both the trainers and the participating delegates.  The young students of the School, Aryan Kalia and Mohini Khanna acted and performed as the Secretary General and the Director General respectively with confidence. I found both them well groomed and enthusiastic. I am confident the well groomed and educated young talent of the School will bring further laurels to their Alma matter like Hockey Olympian Hardik Singh and Little Master Vinay among others. The function concluded with the Vote of Thanks by the PDAVMUN Coordinator Balwinder Singh and SG Aryan Kalia. This narration will not be complete, if I don’t mention appreciably the good job done by Preeti Khehra and Jaspreet  Boparai as Master of Ceremonies.

M.S. Bhullar, IPS (Retired)

Having just commemorated its 25^th Anniversary, Police DAV Public School has come a long way in establishing itself as one of the leading ‘Centers of Excellence’ in school education in the area under the stewardship of its founding Principal Rashmi Vij and the dream project of a ‘Man of Vision’, M.S. Bhullar, IPS, Founding Chairman

of the school management. It is a matter of gratification to know that Bhullar Sahib is still actively involved in over-seeing the progress of the School. I have had an opportunity to bump into him some months ago at the retirement Reception of one of my friends S.K. Kalia, IPS at the Punjab Golf Club in the neighborhood of Police DAV Public School campus. I found him alert and full of life and still kicking. Along with the academics and educational administrators like Dr. Rashmi Vij and her team, the top brass of Punjab Police from M.S. Bhullar to I.P.S. Sahota, who also is a good friend of mine, remained at the helm and contributed immensely to development and progress of Police DAV Public School at Jalandhar during their respective tenures as the Boss of Jalandhar PAP. Yet another dynamic IPS officer, M.F Farooqui has joined the big league as Chairman of the school management recently. I take this opportunity to wish him and Principal Rashmi Vij all the best for further success of the School in the years to come.

Communal strife and Hate Speech - a layman’s views

 

Communal strife and Hate Speech - a layman’s views                   

The very Preamble of the Indian Constitution opens with the sentence comprising of words like ‘Secularism’ and ‘Fraternity’and as such there should not be any reason to subscribe to the negative sentiments which lead to communal strife and upset the social fabric of the society. These are the very fundamentals of our polity and

society as stipulated in the law which needs to be established and nurtured with political will and constitutional morality. It is more so as we live in a multi-cultural, multi-lingual and multi-religious country; India that is Bharat. We the people of India willingly and consciously adopted this way of living in a democratic way since Independence in 1947.  The issues like India as a Hindu State, Akhand Bharat and any other such formulations was resolutely negated and rejected by our forefathers in the India’s new constitution. Fraternity and Harmony are the two catch words which would guide our ‘Tryst with destiny’ which we embarked upon on the mid-night speech on August 15, 1947 by the first PM Jawahar Lal Nehru and by the Chief Architect of the Continuation, Dr. B.R. Ambedkar on November 25, 1949 in his last speech in the Constituent Assembly while referring to history that how did we lose our independence earlier in the past he said, “Will history repeat itself? It is this thought which fills me with anxiety. This anxiety is deepened by the realisation of the fact that in addition to our old

Dr. B.R. Ambedkar

enemies in the form of castes and creeds we are going to have many political parties with diverse and opposing political creeds. Will Indian place the country above their creed or will they place creed above country? I do not know. But this much is certain that if the parties place creed above country, our independence will be put in jeopardy a second time and probably be lost forever. This eventuality we must all resolutely guard against. We must be determined to defend our independence with the last drop of our blood.”

 India has come a long way in transforming India into Bharat as visualized by our leadership, the Margdarshaks. India’s secular credentials do not give any space to ‘Majority or Minority’ in our polity and society and provide an equal status to all as Indians or Bhartiyas. We are to understand this clearly; sooner the better. My motivation to write my thoughts on the increasing communal strife in the recent years has come from the Supreme Court’s recent observations on ‘Hate Speech’, a much needed and desirable step to safeguard ‘national unity and integrity’ of India, if we want to remain on track to take India to its destination – a developed and prosperous country. I don’t think anybody in his or her sanity would disagree that, of late, the issues like; Hindu-Muslim divide, Hindu and Sikh fears on Conversion, Treatment of the weaker sections of the society, commonly called dalits, Majority Vs Minority, inter alia, have surfaced and all of us, consciously or otherwise, are made to follow the dictates of both political and religious leaderships having narrow agenda and vested interests. It is a dangerous trend. Let us admit this ground reality before we proceed further.

Supreme Court of India has taken note of  “hate speech’ which is the fountain head of increasing ‘communal strife’ in the country, much against the spirit of our constitution and the secular edifice of our polity. “Where we have reached in the name of religion and what we have reduced religion to is tragic,” an anguished Supreme Court

observed on October 20 and further added, “This is the 21st century! Article 51A of the constitution says we should develop a scientific temper” Holding that the Constitution envisaged a secular nation, the court directed the states to promptly register criminal cases against the offenders without waiting for a complaint to be filed. The apex court warned that any delay on the part of the administration in taking action on this “very serious issue” would invite the contempt of the court – Der Ayet Daroost Ayet. While the direction of the highest court of the land must be respected and appreciated, it would have been better if the courts decide to take suo-motu cognisance of ‘hate speech’ and direct the concerned law and order authorities to register FIRs against the offenders. It would serve as a much needed deterrent to stop this invisible enemy of the Communal Harmony in the country. The court has also rightly observed, “There cannot be fraternity unless members of community drawn from different religions or castes of the country are able to live in harmony.” Not long ago, Supreme Court also advised electronic media and anchors and the government to stop supporting and encouraging hate speech and said, it was the duty of an anchor “to see that hate speech doesn't continue the moment someone starts.” While commenting on how anchors fan hate speech, the Court said, “They are not being dealt with firmly. They can be taken off air, fined; if such sanction comes...Any anchor will have their own views and won't be divorced from the channel's business lines. What is wrong is people invited not being allowed to express their own view, being muted or run down. Their right is lesser than that of the listener.” Courts cannot do much, if the government of the day tends to encourage the so called free and fair media, popularly called, these days as ‘Godi Media’. This trend is the very negation of democratic polity and just society, the forebearers of communal harmony and fraternity.

Not that one segment of the society or any particular group of the majority or minority communities is responsible for the deteriorating communal harmony and fraternity; clapping could be done by both the hands. Of late, it has been observed that social fabric of the society is getting tattered by frivolous considerations unleashed either by design by the vested interests or otherwise by ignorance as societal camp following by the uneducated and religiously motivated masses. It is a dangerous situation and a big challenge not only to the democratic polity but also to a civilised society.

What is way out? These issues of hate speech, religious fanaticism, majority-minority syndrome, pseudo nationalism, real or perceived fears of conversion etc. need to be addressed on priority and with sincerity. No religion could be above the security and integrity of the country, over all well being and progress of the society, rule of law and constitutional morality. How this could be done? It is big question and my off the cuff and humble suggestions are:-

Majority-Minority issue should be dealt with sensitivity and mutual respect both by the government and the civil society respecting the secular credentials of constitutional arrangements and also the emotional aspects of the majority community; the main stream of the society. India that is Bharat is not a ‘Hindu State’ but from centuries together, it is called ‘Hindustan’. This fact cannot be ignored to respect and accommodate the sensitivities of ‘Hindutava’ elements. Similarly, the Muslim minority, as big as more than 200 million, made India as their home by choice in the wake of partition in 1947 on the premise of ‘two nation’ principle. They carry the ancestry and legacy of their forefathers who happened to be the rulers, good or bad is not the issue, not only as Muslims but Hindustanis too. The Hindu majority should stop taunting them of their religious lineage. What is their fault or crime in taking birth in a Muslim family? The Mughals came and assimilated with the main stream of the society and made Hindustan their home. They remained with the society in thick and thin and fought for the freedom of India standing and marching with Hindu brethren against the colonial forces like Portuguese, French and British. Much more could be written on this aspect but I stop here.

Muslim minority, in the larger interest of the society and going by the spirit of the constitutional set up and spirit, should stop harping and insisting on some of small irritants like Hijab, Madrassa, Ajaan, Muslim personal law etc. to integrate with the main stream of the society with open mind and magnanimity. I say so not to harm the identity of the Muslim community but to underline the fact these attributes or traditions are not prevalent or practised in the ‘Muslim World’ universally. There is no harm in going by the ‘Common Civil Code’ in a democratic set up.

Conversion is a ‘non-issue’, to my mind. It is a bogie. Generally, one remains what one was born. Only a microscopic fringe changes or converts due to various reasons; social, economic, political, and religious or let us says by coercive way. Why the majority Hindus with as large and mind boggling size, more than 110 crorers, should fear or worry? There is no point in making this an issue. Of late, it is surprising to note that even Sikhs are threatened by Christians, Hindus and Sikhs are threatened by Buddhists. Conversion has many aspects and one of major one, to my mind is caste and bias against the socially oppressed and depressed sections of the society. Instead of opposing conversion, it is desirable to address the social ills of society like caste system and graded inequality prevailing in the society. Conversion is a difficult decision and generally no one easily succumbs to go ahead. Let us introspect ourselves before raising this biggie.

Demographic imbalance is yet another non-issue. Of course, increasing population is a matter of concern which may be addressed in the national population policy, as deemed appropriate. But the flagging the so called imbalance and blaming the Muslim minority for this is not correct. By such non-issues, minority community gets threatened and defensive and tends to generate avoidable friction and strife. The fact of the matter is that undue population increase is an offshoot of ‘poverty and illiteracy’ as a vicious cycle. Muslim minority and dalits are on the receiving end. With their socio-economic empowerment, demographic imbalance would automatically disappear.

More such points may be listed to stem the rot in the communal harmony. PM Narendra Modi addressing a meeting in Gujarat to commemorate Sardar Patel said that ‘For India, its unity has never been a compulsion, but has been its uniqueness.’ He added, has “This unity of our country has been an eyesore for our enemies. Not just today, but for thousands of years and even during the period of our

slavery, all foreign attackers did whatever they wanted to do to break this unity,” He underlined and said, “Those forces are still prevalent, they want to make the people of the country fight in the name of caste, region and language, he said, adding that history is also presented in such a way that people cannot stand with each other.” Rightly so; we the people of India should be cautious and mindful of divisive forces in the name of ‘caste, religion and language’ as alerted by PM Modi. There is a rider, if I venture to say candidly, to the approach and thinking of the majority community and the currently ruling party in this regard. We should stop digging history which could not be changed and wiped out. We are to live with it and strive to make India strong and prosperous in the coming years perusing the lofty ideals of “Sab Ka Sath-Sab Ka Vikas-Sab Ka Vishvas”, the professed mission of PM Narendra Modi. I conclude this with a poetic assertion of Allma Iqbal:-

Hawaida  Aaj Apne Zakhm-e-Pinhan Kar Ke Chorun Ga
Lahoo Ro Ro Ke Mehfil Ko Gulistan Kar Ke Chorun Ga

I will surely exhibit all my hidden wounds today
I will surely change assembly to a garden with blood‐mixed tears

Jalana Hai Mujhe Har Shama-e-Dil Ko Souz-e-Pinhan Se
Teri Tareek Raaton Mein Charaghan Kar Ke Chorun Ga

I have to light every heart’s candle with hidden pathos
I will surely create bright illumination in your darkness

Parona Aik Hi Tasbeeh Mein In Bikhare Danon Ko
Jo Muskhil Hai, To Iss Mushkil Ki Asan Kar Ke Chorun Ga

If stringing these scattered pearls in a single rosary
Is difficult, I will surely make this difficult task easy