Rushdie’s right: Blasphemy is good

If Salman Rushdie was worried if his brand of defiance was passé, the recent upgrading of the bounty on his head (by $500,000) would come as a great relief. And in a subsequent interview, the author reiterated his belief that blasphemy is necessary to promote modern thinking.

Whether he intended it or not, the Booker-winning author has brought into focus one usually-ignored truth — that blasphemy has brought about progress and development as we see it.

The development of science has always been in the blasphemous path and many men who followed reason gave their lives for it. If they hadn’t challenged the faith-driven interpretations of nature, we would have been still with medieval mindsets.

*Imagine the whole world believing than someone created the first man from dirt and a few days later the dude wakes up with a missing rib and a naked woman at his side. And since this is the original man-woman pair, the entire humanity is a mass of inbreds.

And we would be living on a flat earth and not sailing too far from land for fear of falling off the edge. Not to forget that the universe would be orbiting the Earth.

People with mental illness would be seen as possessed with evil spirits and subjected to brutal treatment (not that this has really changed even now).

It was not long ago when my mother’s colleague died of high blood sugar because his prayer group believed it is against god’s will to take medicine. After prayers failed to keep his soul attached to his body, he left behind an unemployed wife and five little children (yes, the sect also believes that family planning offends god).

If people were to not to allow the ‘mysterious ways’ to decide their behaviour, the world would definitely be a better place. Caste divisions, communal riots, ethnic cleansing, genocides, female genital mutilation and a million other inhuman practices would have no takers.

Think of the absurdness of some random guy in India going around burning government buses in which he travels daily because of some offensive short film made in the United States. How does your thunder and tirade help, buddy?

We wouldn’t have had the misfortune of our greatest contemporary artist, MF Husain, dying in exile if his artistic freedom hadn’t ‘offended religious sensitivities’ and made him a target of legal harassment and vandalism of his works.

Imagine the amount of money you would be saving, or spending on matters of your tastes and choice it wasn’t diverted to people who claim to have a hotline with god or can broker your way to salvation (for a price).

Couples would have been living happily if they weren’t forced apart because a couple planets or stars aren’t favouring their union.

And when you want to do something you can do it at a time of your own choosing and not wait for some board-reader to tell you the ‘auspicious’ time for it.

Colour of the flag or name of the sect doesn’t manner, religious bigots have been there all throughout human history. They thrive on ignorance, blind faith, complacence, nepotism and the desire for status quo by the privileged. The lines are redrawn and rules are bent to suit their material gains and controlling power.

Life is short, let us use our brains (unless already muddled by religions) to be better human beings to our brothers than be dictated by criteria to avoid the purgatory.

*Removed from the printed version

(This article was published as the editorial column in Postnoon on September 19, 2012)

India’s independent, but Bharat’s still a mess

The woods are lovely, dark, and deep,

But I have promises to keep,

And miles to go before I sleep,

And miles to go before I sleep.

— Robert Frost

Another Inde­pendence Day has come, actually the 65th one, and as usual the nation has been served its regular dose of an inspiring speech by its prime minister. However, the questions remain about what it has done for the countrymen.

At least Manmohan Singh has shown enough sense in not bragging about 'India Shining' like his NDA predecessors and has been realistic in saying that true independence will come only when we “banish poverty, illiteracy, hunger and backwardness”.

I wouldn't show the audacity to advise the economist on how to steer the economy through these turbulent times of Eurozone crisis, but I definitely know his team should do more to keep my food and fuel bills down.

True that poor monsoons have played truant so far and it will impact the food stocks. But that doesn't justify close to 40 per cent of foodgrains rotting away due to lack of storage infrastructure. Unless this massive hole is plugged, the effect of all subsidies and special packages will be negated.

While rapid economic growth is being encouraged, little is being done to check the irreversible damage it is doing to the ecology and the people. Special Economic Zones on farmland; hydel projects drowning swathes of forest; toxic emissions that pollute and the millions who are displaced, deprived of dignity and condemned to lives of penury. Those who champion people's causes and come to power turn even worse oppressors and exploiters.

Corruption is endemic. Central ministers to office attendants in villages; Generals to traffic cops; judiciary, bureaucrats, doctors and scientists... there is no end to the list. And, of course, the 'enterprising' politicians who turn multi-billionaires in few years by 'serving the people'. Anti-corruption crusaders have fallen to the lure of political power and a 'guru' with dubious credentials is hogging the limelight.

Society is in tatters. Caste system continues to condemn hundreds of millions to sub-human conditions. Caste kangaroo courts run their writ of murders, gangrapes and ostracism campaigns, and the official machinery only pays lip service to protection of human rights. Reservations that were instituted to promote integration have turned into a major divisive factor. Sex crimes against women and minors are skyrocketing while thousands of female foetuses are killed through selective abortion. Manual scavenging continues and a majority of villages still don't have toilets. Unless these fundamental issues are resolved, whatever progress we claim to make will remain tall claims.

The GDP share for healthcare remains dismal and social security a distant dream. Dozens of key legislations including Women's Reservation Bill, Lokpal Bill and Whistleblowers Bill have not been passed as politicians continue to squabble and waste the time of Parliament.

Security remains a major concern. A substantial part of the country is literally under Maoist control and separatist insurgencies continue to take toll on lives in several states. The latest spell of violence in Assam shows fundamental flaws are yet to be rectified. Terrorist attacks continue across the country even as plan after plan and agency after agency are announced to tackle the menace.

All we ask of the leaders of this country is to show some real commitment to the original purpose for which the people put their faith in them and the institution of democracy.

(This article was published as the editorial column in Postnoon on August 15, 2012)

Racism is no match for our caste system

From prime minister to panwallah, all were ‘shocked’ at the gory incident in which a white supremacist gunned down six people at a Wisconsin gurdwara. The widespread anger was reflected in Hyderabad too where ‘peaceful’ protestors scuffled with policemen at the US Consulate (as if the US State Department provided the gunman weapons and ammunition).

While we are outraged at the racial discrimination faced by people of Indian origin across the world, there is hardly any enthusiasm in fighting the caste system that continues to rob hundreds of millions in this country of their life, liberty and dignity — ironically, guaranteed as Fundamental Rights by the Constitution.

Hundreds of young men and women fall victim to ‘honour killings’ every year (thousands go unreported or are hushed up by the well-connected families) because they dare to defy primitive caste kangaroo courts called khasi and choose their life partner. It was barely three months ago that an Uttar Pradesh DIG, Satish Kumar Mathur, was caught on camera asking a villager to kill the latter’s daughter if she was found to have eloped. And these are the men in uniform the judiciary expects to protect inter-caste and inter-faith couples from persecution and harm.

Then comes the inhuman practice of condemning hundreds of thousands of Dalits to the dignity-stripping job of manual scavenging. According to a 2011 ministry of social justice report, only 1,18,474 out of about 7.7 lakh (official figures) manual scavengers were given alternative professions under government schemes. Apart from social stigma, meagre wages, they fall victim to most virulent diseases and at times meet their ends in the ‘line of duty’.

Across the country millions are discriminated against in social life due to their caste. Entire communities are forced to live outside villages but are expected to serve the upper castes at their beck and call without questioning. Those who resist are suppressed with most brutal measures including murder and gang-rape of women of their families. Even if the victim/s mange to file a police complaint overcoming their fear, little chance do they have against the money, influence and top lawyers that their oppressors have. Eventually, destruction of lives and families is reduced to just another number in the ever-growing statistics.

In the land of modern social reformer ‘Periyar’ EV Ramasamy, two-tumbler system is still widely practiced. There are villages divided by ‘caste walls’ topped by barbed wire and lower caste people are not allowed to use public facilities and denied entry to temples.

Politicians support caste divisions to preserve their vote banks and fatten their wallets. Dalit ‘icon’ Mayawati’s opulent lifestyle and splurge of thousands of crores on statues and parks while people starved and farmers committed suicide would be a good example.

If the situation of Dalits can be termed bad, it is worse for the tribals. They are the first casualties when ‘development for greater common good’ takes place. Projects such as dams, power plants and Special Economic Zones that bring prosperity to the country are their worst enemies. Dispossessed and driven out of their ancestral lands, they end up in shanty towns and are brutally exploited in every possible manner by the rest.

Considering the colossal extent of our failure to function as a civilised society, we are standing on wafer-thin ground when we point fingers at ‘racism’.

(This article was published as the editorial column in Postnoon on August 8, 2012)

This high-steak game could land you in jail

The president has given her approval for Madhya Pradesh’s anti-cow slaughter legislation after a delay of almost two years. Not just slaughter, even consumption of beef can land you in jail for seven years.
It also has provisions allowing a whole range of officials beginning at head constable to barge in anywhere and conduct checks on mere grounds of suspicion.
Cow slaughter is one topic that has been the centre of heated debates and disputes over it have led to innumerable communal clashes across the country but not a single government, Central or State, has been able to come up with an amicable solution.
Such legislations’ implications don’t stop at socio-religious spheres but spill over into guidelines on state policy that defines the right of an individual.
Ours is a country where there are thousands of castes, sub-castes and communities — each with its own culture, tradition and way of life. One sweeping law like that is a blunt statement to those in the minority to let go of all that and be in ‘conformity’ with what’s ‘acceptable’.
For many communities, beef is very much a part of their regular diet and a cheap supply of essential proteins. Beef dishes are part of ceremonies ranging from birth to death. It would be gross injustice to force them to abandon their culture using legal coersion.
What about the Northeastern states or a State such as Kerala, where beef is a delicacy popular among all communities? Who will protect the rights of millions of Hindus spread across the country who eat beef?
Now imagine a scenario where two of the biggest minorities were to declare onion as sacred to their faith. Will the governments introduce laws to prohibit farming, sale, transportation and consumption of onions because it would hurt the religious sensitivities of the minorities?
The essence of a functional democracy is presence of an environment of tolerance where every segment can enjoy their unique way of life without being arm-twisted to fit into a larger picture.
If a plural country like ours can’t ensure their rights, how different are we from countries where rape victims are stoned to death because they did not follow the lifestyle demanded by the majority religion?
For a country to progress the people have to feel motivated and for that they need to feel that they are valued for what they are. If not, the feeling of alienation would creep in and the social, economic and political cost would be too much to bear.
The harassment and humiliation people from Northeast face all over India, with hardly any help coming from the police or the otherwise vigilant civil society, because of their ‘different’ lifestyle has left scars that reservations and economic packages can’t heal.
When Indians are targeted abroad in racially motivated attacks there is an outrage across the country. Media, civil society and politicians compete to outdo each other in pointing out the stark contrast between our ‘tolerant’ heritage and the narrow-minded West. Next time your blood boils at the news of racial abuse of Indians, think of what we are doing to our people in our country.
A possible solution doesn’t require rocket science to arrive at. It’s called the policy of ‘live and let live’.