A U.S. panel on religious freedoms has placed India on its watch list of countries where such freedoms are at risk, noting that there has been a “disturbing increase” in violence against minorities in the South Asian country. Not surprisingly India has described this as ‘regrettable’ while at the same time justifying that as a country of 1.1 billion people, which is multi-ethnic and multi-religious, “aberrations”, if any, are dealt with promptly within the legal framework under the watchful eye of an independent judiciary and a vigilant media. Even if New Delhi argues its position it has to be borne in mind that the US panel was obviously referring to specific incidents—the communal violence against religious minorities specifically Christians in Orissa in 2008 and Muslims in Gujarat in 2002. These are facts so rather than continue to be in denial mode the Indian State must introspect and see where it is going wrong. It must become more humane in its functioning. As a sovereign power it may be difficult to accept such a formulation but it is equally important to address issues facing the State be it social, religious, economic or even political in nature. Remaining to keep silent and stiff may only lead to further discontentment and alienation of the aggrieved section of people.
What should also be noted here is that while the failure of a government is more manifest and therefore obvious, the root of the problem lie with the State, described as a soulless and lifeless machine and also the political leadership at any given point of time. The problem is that the notion of a State and its interests has become too stereotype so much so that there is no space for governments to actually think out of the box. What we therefore have is a vicious cycle of an entrenched State and governments which function on the notion of a status quo power. That is why change if any has to come from the political leadership. But they too end up serving the State’s dogmatism. This factor is confronting many States and failure to unravel this dilemma has added to the overbearing problem faced by many countries. This does not mean that change is not taking place. Recently we saw the transformation in the United States when Barack Obama became the first Black President. And this change to the State’s old mindset—that a Black man could not possibly ever rise up to the highest position in that country—was only finally broken because of the political leadership and essentially the transformative message of the one person Obama.
Emerging world powers such as India can also be in the league of those who can unravel the fundamental flaws of our so called nation states and in the process become a truly secular, plural and democratic State. As the country has just commemorated another Independence Day it calls for a sincere introspection on the part of the political leadership. It is during such times that we acknowledge the relevance of the teachings of Mahatma Gandhi, India’s Father of the Nation. He was often described as a ‘philosophic anarchist’ rejecting the conception of the State and its authority, which to him was driven by violence and coercion. And the Indian State has today become just that—grappling with conflict and violence of different hues and degrees. Be it Kashmir, Northeast or the Naxalite problem, it is time to go back to the thoughts and action of Gandhi whose concept of Satyagraha as a principle in resolving conflicts between men remains as relevant today as it was in combating the British rule. The relevance of Gandhi’s teachings becomes even more vital for the future of a democratic India. Hopefully Gandhi’s philosophy will give the Indian State the much needed human touch.
