A few days back I told my Dad about my unhappiness about the State of Affairs across the world. To which my Dad questioned: are you talking about India or generally?

I said: Well right now after seeing what has happened in the Capitol building, I am unhappy about the world as well. The last year we all know has not been great but the beginning of 2021 doesn’t look promising either. 

But yes if you are asking about India, Yes I am unhappy about that as well. 

(To which he had a hearty laugh) and said: Aren’t you a Bhakt anymore? No more NaMo Namah?

And I broke into laughter as well. 

Well, that is not the point Papa. There are things which I absolutely applaud NaMo BJP government for. From infrastructure projects – such as tube metro, tunnels in the toughest terrains of India, Express Corridor, and other achievements such as OROP, abrogation of Article 370 in J&K, modernisation of Education system, consciousness towards the need of a cleaner and plastic free India and recognition of local indigenous culture of various states – there is a lot which has been commendable on their part. The results of which might take some time to showcase or gain momentum. 

“But if you attribute so much progress and development to them, what exactly disturbs you?”, he quipped.

“Imbalance of forces and misuse of power”, was my immediate response. There is this sense of mistrust prevailing across the society because the system is being tweaked and twisted to suit the political benefits. The rules and law are flouted on a daily basis that might be just fine till BJP is inpower or till the time the common mass doesn’t take notice of it. But the day, it gets noticed – it is going to lead to a State of Anarchy – a huge uncontrollable rebellion. And that is my concern. 

I start with the simplest of examples – I have been writing for Op-Ed in Daily Excelsior for the last 8 years now (since 2012). But never before I found this resistance against publishing an article that is anti-incumbent. And this sentiment – when you extrapolate this to the larger ecosystem – is prevalent in the National Media as well. 

Isn’t the purpose of the media to present an unbiased picture of the state of affairs and make the public aware? But is that even happening? Absolutely not! We all know that Times Now being pro-BJP, NDTV anti-BJP and CNBC will stay neutral to such an extent that it would not even add value.

From Delhi riots in Feb 2020 till now about the debates around how the corona was handled in India and the release of vaccination – the media have not been able to present a true picture. This atmosphere of fear on speaking the truth or fear of being harmed on presenting unbiased facts is disturbing to say the least. 

From state level to national level, everyone is observing silently – how the portfolio of ministers, governors of the states, key people at the judiciary (High Court to Supreme courts) are moved as per the “political need”. I am disturbed by this imbalance of forces and power. This movement then not becomes a tactic or a technique but a precedent for many other offices down the hierarchy. 

Everyone is so busy pleasing the BJP so that they might as well get benefitted (and prevent themselves any harm) and this is showing up around. (they say sab apna chul sek rahe hain not knowing and realising this is going to come back and haunt the entire society)

Aren’t the 3 pillars of democracy – Legislature, Executive, and Judiciary supposed to work in tandem (yet not hands in gloves) and keep a check on each other?

Camouflaging and ricochet – that is my other major concern of the BJP government. There always seems to be one or the other issue be it Narcotics in Bollywood, to Kangana’s tantrums, to some protest, or discussions over trivial topics that really do not add value to the society as a whole. But the prime time, debate hours go on to discuss these for hours and days and months – Why? To sideline the attention of the public and masses from the issues of growth, development, economics and finance of the country? To digress. 

As an incumbent if you are doing 1000 things right and 200 things wrong – I would be able to trust you only when you hold ownership and accountability for all 1200 things and not for those 1000 alone. And especially not by distracting people to something that is spicier but useless.

The fear that any opposition to BJP would be dealt strongly or muted forever is deadly. In fact that is exactly against the ethos of Democracy. To dissent is the core in democracy and to come to a solution unanimously and amicably is the strength. Unfortunately our core is getting suppressed and so our strength is weakening as a result.

An atmosphere where people are not allowed to speak up their mind with the fear of being silenced forever, an ecosystem where all the pillars of democracy are muddled to work to protect the incumbent, media where loud voices and shouting is allowed to set the context of a debate – is then a perfect recipe for Anarchy (Not a Superpower)! That is not India, I dream of.

This lack of trust in the system – emanating from inefficient or disloyal pillars of democracy, unavailability of right and rightful information, information overdose that confuses the public, corrupt and selfish bureaucracy and showbiz politics – is going to eat up the society like termites.

If something costs us our values and the basic DNA, that is best left to its own. And that is why what happened in Capitol Building shocks me, worries me and succumbs me to those dreadful thoughts. Because that is exactly what happens when we give so much power and weightage to one person more than the constitution itself that we as society are blinded to differentiate between right vs wrong. What if that happens in India?

Because, we all know (though subconsciously) that neither Narendra Modi (who we all love and adore 犀利士 and the man who has it all under control) nor BJP is going be at the helm of affairs forever but when the takht will topple with any other party or with people who may not have as much might as our NaMo – what is going to be the State of Affairs in our country then?

Will there be hooliganism and vandalism at the very temple of our constitution – The parliament?

So, Papa, this absence of sanity is what disturbs me! And the world surely is on a bad trip that it cannot make sense of all of this and chooses to ignore.