When one speaks of ‘democracy’, one means ‘rule of the people’. How beautiful this concept sounds! For it implies that unlike in monarchies or plutocracies, the power to change or influence the course of history, of their own destiny, lies not in the hands of one singular person or a group of individuals, but in the hands of the people who live this destiny. Lincoln’s “government of the people, by the people, for the people” not only binds a democracy to the people but also implores the people to adhere to the values of democracy.
But then Acton has said “power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely”. Has this come to be true in India, a nation that prides itself on its ‘democratic’ traditions? Has our democracy lost its vitality, its zeal to work for the better of the people? And in truth, have the people of India lost their enthusiasm for democracy, for its institutions and for its mechanisms?
Two incidents stand out of the plethora of news flooding the television screen, incidents which serve to remind us that no matter how much we may tom-tom our democratic values, we remain a nation which has perhaps never really comprehended the true meaning of what it means to be a democracy. Two incidents, which may not seem out of the ordinary, and that they aren’t so isn’t a matter of pride or an excuse for their occurrence, but all the more reason for us to ponder over where we are headed as a nation.
At Bhagalpur, two policemen assaulted and dragged a criminal from a motorcycle till such time that he should become unconscious. And this was all done at the prodding of the crowd. That this occurred in a state notorious with the law being broken is no justification; that this occurred at the hands of the police, an institution already demonised as an unruly arm of the State, isn’t any defence. What is shocking, perhaps even more so, is that the people stood watching, encouraging the officials concerned to perform their dastardly act a little longer.
At Agra, famed city of love, an angry mob torched vehicles and brought the entire city to a standstill, all supposedly in the act of grieving for four young men killed by an errant truck-driver. And when the police went in to try and control the mob, the mass turned on them and proceeded to show them just who’s the ‘boss’.
Both incidents serve to illustrate that the people have perhaps lost their faith in the ability of the democracy that we have come to take for granted to deliver justice to them. They have decided that if justice will not come to them of its own, they will force it to come, but ‘justice’ will be done.
The two policemen have been suspended, which is a positive sign implying that no breach of the law will be permitted, especially by those entrusted with the responsibility of protecting it, but what about the mob? We are well aware that whenever we have the State committing atrocities, we have exact details on who did what. But when it comes to the masses, why is it that we choose to hide behind the illusion of the ‘faceless’ crowd?
That these incidents are but a mere footnote in our history is no reason not to wake up and smell the coffee. It is time that we decided the course of this nation, of how we will allow this nation to progress here on. And in this, we find ourselves bearing a most onerous responsibility. It will not be easy; it will certainly not be fast. But one thing’s for sure: the rule of the people must not be permitted to deteriorate into the rule of the jungle.
5 comments:
Its rather strange that we choose to link these bizarre but frighteningly regular events with the democratic nature of our government.
To me, these, among others, are instances of vigilante justice being meted out at a time when common people like you and me have lost faith in the efficacy and promptness of the justice system.
You cannot keep cases pending for 5-10-15-20 years and use clichés like "let the law take its own course"
The law's "own course" is a convoluted one with a million impediments to obviate speedy redressal.
Exemplary judgements high-profile cases will not suffice. The wounds of our judicial system have been festering for long.
Its time for the doctor to step in.
The question is, does anyone care enough?
People are fed up with being frustrated with the government and the law. It can be plainly seen inthese incidents, which are rathe r unfortunate, I must say. But then this is what democracy is all about. If this dosen't act like an eye opener for the judiciary, then maybe some decades down the line, we can expect another "Russian Revolution" right here in India.
I completely agree with Neeraj's views.
It is however easy to scorn the mass atrocities by the 'masses', but anger knows no rational reasoning. When people have a feeling that they have been wronged and no action is taken against the perpetrators, such outbursts are bound to happen.
Anything in excess is harmful.Same can be said abt democracy.It is the mere misuse at the hands of politicians,govt babus or common people.Sometimes the acts of people in power, those who try to bend things in their favor, makes you stand up and take objection. But then who will pay heed to it unless it is not strong and audible enough to make them hear what u feel about the whole situation.So the necessity for mob demonstrations and protestations.But then when the feeling crosses all borders then it results in mob frenzy which deviates from the very aim at the root of all this.
It is time for the government to stop and learn something from all these incidents rather than suppressing them which might result,u never know in some kind of french or any other revolution.
trinngggggg!!!!!new post...
Post a Comment