The Tricolor Defeated the British: Can Modi Crush Its Power?
The Tricolor Defeated the British: Can
Modi Crush Its Power?
The fire of public anger has been lit around the Modi
government, and in my view, he and his partners are making a desperate effort
to crush the movement before it grows beyond their control. Reports of action
against people marching with the Indian flag raise a question that should
trouble every Indian: has carrying the tricolor in a peaceful protest become a
crime?
Nearly a century ago, the British tried to suppress Indians
marching under the national flag. They eventually learned that repression could
not extinguish the demand for freedom. The tricolor became a symbol of a people
determined to take their country back. Today, when Indians carry that flag to
challenge their own government, those in power should remember what it
represents. Its strength comes from the people, and that strength has not disappeared.
According to accounts circulating about the movement, three
CJP leaders have been sent to prison following a five-day protest with the tricolor
at Jantar Mantar. If peaceful protest is being treated as a threat, the
government must explain its actions. With a major rally being called for
October 16 in the heart of Delhi, attempts to silence the movement may only
deepen the anger behind it.
Indians are stubborn people. Approach them with respect, and
they can make enormous sacrifices for a common purpose. Threaten them,
humiliate them, or try to force them into submission, and their determination
can become stronger. That is a lesson the British eventually learned after
humiliating a well-educated Indian, Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, by throwing him
out of a train compartment despite his valid ticket and right to travel in it.
Today, it seems the Indian government has forgotten that lesson.
A nation with thousands of years of history has survived
invasions, colonial rule, and enormous social and political upheavals. The
challenge before India today is serious, but its people have faced greater
challenges. No government should mistake its temporary hold on power for
permanent ownership of the nation.
The fire surrounding Modi is, in my opinion, largely of his
own making. Promises raised expectations, but publicity cannot forever hide the
distance between those promises and people’s lives. When students see their
futures threatened, families struggle, and citizens feel unheard, anger does
not disappear simply because television tells them everything is going well.
Modi once invited the nation to hold him accountable if he
failed to deliver change. The public has every right to remember that
invitation and demand answers through peaceful, democratic means.
Accountability cannot be welcomed when it brings applause and rejected when it
brings criticism.
Instead of seeing a government working for ordinary people, I
see a government facing serious allegations that its decisions have benefited
powerful business interests. Those allegations deserve independent
investigation. The nation’s wealth belongs to its people, and no political
leader or business partner has the right to treat it as personal property.
Promises dismissed as “jumlas” leave people wondering whether
they were ever meant to be fulfilled. Meanwhile, supportive media outlets
repeat the government’s claims and often avoid the questions those claims
should face. But repetition does not turn a falsehood into the truth, and
publicity does not erase a broken promise.
What surprises me most is how easily many political claims
can be checked. A document, a comparison of figures, a simple calculation, or
the click of a button can expose the gap between a speech and reality. People
who understand numbers and examine evidence cannot be expected to surrender
their judgment every time a leader steps onto a stage.
To me, this battle is increasingly between people demanding
evidence and leaders expecting unquestioning belief. It is between the habit of
asking questions and the machinery of rehearsed answers. Science teaches us to
examine a claim, test it, and accept what the evidence shows. Political
propaganda asks us to believe first and stop questioning afterward.
Who will win depends on whether Indians keep questioning,
verifying, and standing together. A government may have the machinery of power,
but the people carry the tricolor. Those who believe they can frighten that
flag into silence should remember the history beneath its colors.
Comments
Post a Comment