I never thought I'd see this so soon. A small portion of my heart also never believed that especially the apathetic and heterogeneous Indian mass, erroneously clubbed as the "Great Indian Middle Class" would be part of the uprising so openly. Better late than never? Is this the beginning or the culmination of crescendo against the long- standing state oppression? Like most of us, I was unaware of the shape, form or timing of the movement, but I must confess I was discomforted since the past few years by the fact that we as citizens are being too tolerant of the state's growing power over us. Did we too easily accept the struggles of living in a "closed" country? It is possible that we have accepted that we are subjects to be ruled forever: first by colonialists and then by our own chaotic and oppressive authorities. Yes, we are "opening up" our economies and societies, but are we being too confused about our vision for the nation? We are not only a mixed up economy but also a mixed-up nation? Are we undermining our own power and restricting our progress by being less ambitious about the future of our country and the humanity? Do our leaders share our vision of a progressive nation or implicitly work towards keeping us divided, state- dependent and poverty stricken?
For long now, the common Indian is sick of being pointed out as a perpetrator of corruption. So we have been hearing solutions like “Don’t pay bribes” or “Stop Corruption” where he/she feels lost, misguided and completely left in the lurch. This angst combined with the pangs of a growing economy where wants are becoming needs, the rich and well- connected reap the benefits of globalization and marketisation more than the poor and marginalized. These processes are themselves not responsible to get us to this state, but we have been made to believe that they are . In my opinion the reason is that the state has an incentive to keep its subjects dependent and subjugated. This further pushes the common folks to seek recluse and fan the rise of a cult figures like Anna Hazare, who were previously not understood or scrutinized.
The prompt gagging action of the government and diametrically opposite sloth-like response on being answerable to the citizenry has been the greatest disappointment for me and many others I am sure. Of course the protesters understand that the PM or the government doesn't have a magic wand for removing corruption but he or his government needn't wait for their voices to fade away to be answerable to a nation of a billion!
So I am keener on the fall-outs of the entire episode at this stage. Will we as a nation take this as a turning point and re-define the destiny of the nation? Now, the questions should extend further than just “Do you support Anna or not?”, “Do you support corruption and if not why don’t you protest at Ramlila ground?” It is a time to critically analyze the value addition of the web of bureaucracy and bulky government intervention that we have inherited/ created since the past century. It is a time to enunciate our vision for the nation and realize that the state will oppress the citizens at their cost till we have an aware, sophisticated and proactive citizenry that moves beyond fasting and sloganeering. It’s not to say that we should be condescending w.r.t. these common forms of protest, but let us extend constant constructive debate and due participation in civic, lawful and peaceful processes.
There is no doubt that today, the voice of the people is neglected once the elections are over or when laws or policies are drafted which will concern them. Isn’t this the peril of democracy that once we choose our representatives we find ourselves meek partners in the functioning of the government? Is the demand for “a more direct democracy” feasible when we need to implement a “ functioning democracy” first? How then will we seek greater participation and proactive role in public life?
Though it is definitely the virtue of democracy that we have many avenues available as citizens to be heard, to choose advice and even criticize our choices. The disappointing scenario will be that the junta will be further disillusioned with the “system” and withdraw its participation from grass-root level activism or boycott civic rights such as voting.
Will this nation of young and youthful people, hit the skepticism soon or will it choose to keep questioning those who are there to serve their causes? Will the government aid the nation towards peace and prosperity rather than exert a coercive power over the day – to –day life of the common Indian? Are we bracing ourselves to ask and answer difficult questions?
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