ARE WE SUFFERING FROM ALZHEIMER’S?

The last two weeks were really turbulent for the India. Not only Delhi, the rape capital of India, but the complete nation was shaken by the shameful incidence of gang rape of a paramedical student in a moving bus. We saw a detailed analysis of the incidence in media & socio-political circles. But sometimes I ask a question to myself- Is this the only case of its kind? How long the protest over this rape issue & the media created hype will last? What happened to Anna’s anti-corruption & Lokpal movement in past? How long Indian people remember these issues?

Yes we are suffering from the Alzheimer’s disease. I don’t blame any single individual or a group but the complete Indian society. Today we talk of freedom at midnight & great Indian democracy. I have serious doubt that did we deserved the democratic governance in 1947? Was Indian society ready for a governance system which it didn’t have any understanding & experience in past. Historically India has been a feudal society & this feudal system is still prevalent if you see the socio-political system & political parties in India. We still see our future leaders in family lineage of the ruling class irrespective of the experience & competence in the heirs. To me democracy was the brain child of few political elites in then Indian politics during pre-independence era. It proved an excellent tool for the politicians at that point of time & still today to rule over the common people in the name of freedom & democracy. But the question is- who has to be blamed?

Alexander Pope has said- For Forms of Government let fools contest; whatever is best administered is best. I don’t want to debate on whether democracy was the best option at time of independence, but still today I have doubt that neither common man knows the meaning of democracy nor they value it.  We have become so much selfish & self-occupied that we don’t see much beyond ourselves. Democratic system has given voting right as an excellent tool to select our leaders. Do we value it & exercise it correctly? I am pained to hear when people say that whole political system is corrupt. Now the question is that when we all know that the whole political system is corrupt- then we repeatedly vote these corrupt people & bring them in power. Now people say that they don’t have any option but to select few among these people, the less corrupt option. Again we only are to blame. I hardly see any intellectual winning any election (our PM who is considered to be one the most learned political personality has to adopt RS route). The moral of the story is you get the kind of governance that you deserve.

Coming again to the current wave of so called awakening of the common man, the mass protest against the Delhi gang rape incidence & the insensitive attitude of the national leadership towards it, we need to go in the root cause of the problem & possible solutions that can be brought to minimise & get rid of this cancerous problem in present Indian society. First thing that has to be accepted is that rape is a societal problem because of loss of social value system in the society. Female has always been worshipped in India in different forms like goddess Durga, Kaali & is considered to be source of power. Shockingly in present scenario she seems to be so weak that she can’t even protect herself. The moral values in people have degraded so much they forget before committing any such crime that they are also born of a mother who is also a female. They also have sisters & daughters. Since, Delhi/NCR has a dubious distinction of having the maximum number of rapes per years & it’s consistency in topping the list of such a heinous crime over past many years, we can analyse the social landscape of Delhi NCR. To me the first problem is the concentration of absolute power in a particular section of people. Also being political capital of India, every one boast of his/her connection with the people in power. They think that whatever they do, they can get away with the law because of their position, wealth & connection. Lord Action has said that Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely. There is one famous term in Delhi CAROBAR meaning bar in car. People used to say that after 8.00 PM in Delhi, an appreciable percentage of the cars have carobar inside it. When these things happen on roads, the inappropriate action also takes place on the road towards a certain gender.

The loop holes in our legal system & delay in conviction & prosecution is encouraging the culprits to have of impression of getting away scot-free even after committing heinous crimes. Law is no more a deterrent to certain section of the society. We also have to look at the police infrastructure & adoption of the strict code of conduct for the police department in the country. The proper check & balances should be applied to this department.    

We have heard many times the spirit of Mumbai to bounce back after any calamity and about the culture of many other cities. Now the question is whether anyone has heard about spirit of Delhi or the culture of Delhi. People are so much self-centred that they hardly think about others. We all see these crimes being committed by people in in public, but how many of raise any alarm or come in front.  Few days back a self-proclaimed god said about the Delhi case that it’s impossible to clap with one hand. The girl is equally responsible as she did not plead culprits to leave her. This only shows the apathy of these kinds of people towards a certain gender (and this so called spiritual person himself has criminal charges against him). This does not show the attitude of that person but the society at large as he has millions of followers who virtually worship him & blindly accept all his deeds.

We saw a massive protest in Delhi & rest of the country for justice to the Delhi victim recently & also saw the attitude of the authorities towards protesters. If we see the demographics of this particular gender in the country, it’s almost 50% of the population. It’s pathetic to see this proportion of population begging for their independence, security & protection. We have a democratic governance system in our country and it can be used as a tool to get elected & come at the leadership position if they show unity. They will become the part of the system & create an environment of gender equality in the society.