In a blog on Linkedin -Raghuram Rajan's article on JNU Violence and Democracy:
In a blog on Linkedin -Full
text of Raghuram Rajan's article on JNU Violence and Democracy:
In a blog on Linkedin, Raghuram Rajan said the news of a gang
of masked assailants breaking into one of India's leading universities,
Jawaharlal Nehru University, and then going on a rampage for hours, attacking
students and faculty, entirely undisturbed by the police, is
"worrisome".
In recent days, the news
coming out of India has been worrisome. A gang of masked assailants broke into
one of India’s leading universities, Jawaharlal Nehru University. They went on
a rampage for hours, attacking students and faculty, entirely undisturbed by
the police. While the identities of the attackers remain unclear, what is clear
is that many of the attacked were activists, and neither the
government-appointed administration nor the police intervened. And this was in
a capital city where everyone is usually on high alert. When even elite
universities become literal battlegrounds, accusations that the government is
attempting to suppress dissenteven if by apathy rather than designgain
substantial credibility.
It is easy to blame our
leadership. But in a democracy as proud and storied as ours, we, the public,
also bear a responsibility. After all, it was the citizenry that put our
leaders into office and acquiesced in their divisive manifesto, which they have
taken as their marching orders. Some of us were hopeful that they would focus
on the economic agenda. Some of us agreed with their speeches, which scratched
and inflamed our own prejudices. Some of us were indifferent, thinking politics
was someone else’s problem. And some of us feared the consequences of being
critical, as critics were ruthlessly made examples of. At the end of the day,
democracy is not merely a right, but it is also a responsibilitya burden to be
the keepers of our Republic, not merely on election day but on every day.
Fortunately, the news from
India has also been elevating. When young people of diverse faiths march
together, Hindus and Muslims arm-in-arm behind our national flag, rejecting
artificial divides stoked by political leaders for their own gain, they show
that the spirit of our constitution still burns brightly. When officers of the
administrative service resign their dream jobs because they do not believe they
can serve in good faith, they are living testimony that the sacrifices made by
the generations that got us freedom still inspire emulation. When an Election
Commissioner carries out his duties impartially despite the harassment it
brings upon his family, he asserts that integrity has not been completely
cowed. When some members of the media work tirelessly to get the truth out even
as their colleagues succumb to government pressure, they demonstrate what it
means to be a dutiful citizen of the Republic. And when a Bollywood actress
registers her silent protest by meeting with the victims of the attack on JNU,
even though she puts attendance at her latest movie at risk, she inspires us
all to take stock of what is truly at stake.
One has to be truly cynical
to not be moved. These people show through their actions that they think truth,
freedom, and justice are not merely lofty words, but ideals worth sacrificing
for. It is they who are fighting today for the India that Mahatma Gandhi gave
his life for. It is they, who never marched to win freedom, but today march to
preserve it, who give us hope that Rabindranath Tagore’s dream into that heaven
of freedom, My Father, let my country awake will continue to be a reality.
The 26th of January marks the 70th anniversary of the day India gave
itself a constitution, full of ideals and liberalism. Our constitution was not
perfect, but it was crafted by learned men and women who had come through the
horrors of a fratricidal partition and sought to create a more united future.
They understood that India was capable of much good, but could also unleash
terrible self-destructive forces, something some of our current leaders would
do well to understand. So they drafted a document that attempts to draw out the
best in us in a spirit of common purpose and pride. What better resolution for
the new decade than to re-dedicate ourselves to ensuring that this spirit burns
strongly in each one of us? In these troublesome times, let us work together to
make India that shining example of tolerance and respect that our founders
envisioned, a beacon once more for a weary world. Let that be our task for the
new decade.
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