I Longkumer
In the past three years and still counting, under the BJP-led government, lynching of minorities – Muslims as well as Dalits, has become a regular feature. There isn’t a single day when such horrific and gruesome incidents are not reported. The best defense of the BJP is to say that such ‘fringe elements’ do not represent the BJP and its ideology.
Beyond words, no action really. It seems to be the case that people are so used to news and reports of lynching. It is a worrying factor and a dangerous trend. By not taking any action against these ‘fringe elements’, the BJP and the RSS are only empowering them. The strategy is clear: instill fear in the hearts of the minorities.
Modi is always quick to tweet offering condolences to victims of tragedies in foreign countries while he maintains stoic silence when it comes to his own backyard. Polarization is slowly becoming a feature of the BJP-led government – a case of US versus THEM. The dream of the BJP and the RSS to create a Hindu rashtra is making headway. While the BJP indulges in talks of development, the RSS and its many other Hindu outfits are out to create terror and havoc.
Imagine their audacity to kill someone simply on suspicion of beef possession or consumption. No one has the right to take anyone else’s life and yet, in Modi’s India, such incidents go unchecked and unabated. It is funny to hear Modi speak of the horrors of Emergency when his own government itself is hell bent on undermining the cherished values of democracy. The minorities of India are in constant fear. It is not a matter of if but when.
What we eat, what we drink or what we consume is our own affair. We should not be ordered by Delhi or Nagpur on such matters. By maintaining silence and turning a blind eye, the government of the day has propelled these ‘fringe elements’ to the mainstream. Today it’s Dalits and Muslims, tomorrow it could be us. The threat has always been there but it’s starting to take shape now.
