We May Not Get One More Socrates, But One Sartre Must Come Out
By Debabrata De
29 February, 2016
Countercurrents.org
A. What a Coincidence! :
Few days back, when a debate happened in Zee Media sponsored famous Jaipur Literary Festival on the topic “Is Freedom of Speech Absolute and Unconditional”, at the same day Man Booker Prize winner writer-activist Arundhati Roy appeared at a Nagpur court, for writing an article (ref-1) in Outlook magazine around seven months earlier, criticizing the system for not allowing bail to wheelchair-bound 90% physically disabled G. N. Sai Baba, a Delhi University professor, arrested for alleged Maoist links. Along with many people I also hoped that there’ll be a large protest by writers and intellectuals in the event, against the legal action for expressing an independent view in the form of writing, whatever may be the situation was. But everything was fine and cool enough in the festival, as most of the Indian writers who was supposed to initiate the protest, actually not bothered about the issue, because it was not their point of interest. Now a days, these Indian writers only focus to write a dramatic fiction which can attract the producers of Bollywood for their next movies.
12 February evening Prof. Amartya Sen delivered a lecture at New Delhi on “The Centrality of the Right to Dissent”. The next day Kanhaiya Kumar, a New Delhi based Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) student leader was arrested for delivering a speech inside the campus, based on some media reports and videos, mostly initiated by Zee Media, before verifying the authenticity of the reports and videos.
B. (Pseudo) Nationalism? :
Yes, I do not think anybody anti-national, or separatist if he/she does not look the things with the same eye of the state, or protest against any decision of state or court. And of course, I do not support the arrest of anybody, anywhere, for expressing views in a peaceful way, whatever the situation may be.
Not for Kanhaiya Kumar, and other JNU students.
Not for Aseem Trivedi, who was arrested in 2012, for his critical cartoon on corruption and political situation in India.
Not for Leyla Zana, a house wife turned peace activist and an elected MP in Turkey from Kurdish region, who was imprisoned several times for her independent speech and peaceful protest.
Not for Ashraf Fayadh, a poet of Palestinian origin, received death sentence in Saudi Arabia, for writing a poem-book named ‘Instructions Within’, and for his atheist view.
C. Identification Politics:
I hope now some of you are happy, as you found a cause to ignore me. I know, you have just identified me, as a Communist, because I’ve criticized incidents happened in both present (BJP), and past (INC lead) government (other than outside India). But, you’re wrong. So, am I a student from JNU or JU? Absolutely not, even as a student, I wasn’t involved with any political party. So, what next? What I may be, an anarchist, an anti-national? You can carry on the searching with your pseudo-intellectual associates. But, believe me, one need not to be communist, or supporter of any political party, or JNU- JU student, or anti national, or anarchist, to protest against injustice, and to support individuals for their democratic rights.
D. Media Trial & Mob Justice:
I’m against media trial. I don’t want to learn loving our country from Mr. Sudhir Chaudhary (CEO- Zee News Media), who was arrested in 2012, and spent nights at Tihar Jail, for allegedly trying to extort Rs.100 crore. But what a surprise, now he is getting X-category security, from our government.
I don’t want to learn loving our country from the lawyers, who lead the mob to attack the peacefully protesting students and journalists in front of a court house in our national capital. I think these lawyers and their followers are not only anti-democratic, but also anti-humanist.
E. Intellectual Influence: I’m sorry Mr. T. V. Mohandas Pai (ref-2). As a taxpayer, I wish to spend my money more, for education in institutes like JNU, JU, etc. where at least some students have spinal cord, just like a human.
I do not consider Mr. Chetan Bhagat more than a fiction writer, who has only target to attract Bollywood producers. So I’ve not taken his comment (“The best part of JNU is Gangs Dhaba. The rest is not to be taken seriously”, ref-3) seriously!
F. Development? :
It’s my choice not to consider the spending of few thousand crores money for making some great statues for some big-chest leaders, when thousands of farmers and tea plantation labors are dying for lack of food, medicine and other basic requirements. You can consider it as development, but I cannot. I can only call it as improper and wrong utilization of resources and capabilities of our country.
Oh, Bullet Train? Please read the article (ref-4) of Prof. Jean Dreze, a well-known economist, before considering the Bullet Train as one of the greatest development for India.
G. What Can Be Done? :
i) The people who respect individual freedom, expect for himself/herself, and want to extend his/her support to those who need, should come forward and join altogether, to form a much bigger platform.
ii) The common people like us, should be more active and should discuss & debate. Believe me, as long as we’ll not discuss and debate among ourselves, the people like Arnab Goswami will spoil our natural ability of thinking. Let’s talk and debate on the concept of nation, concept of development, concept of nonviolence, concept of freedom, to understand the issues before taking a decision, and of course before defending our thinking.
We may not get one more Socrates to save us from danger, but one Sartre must come out from ourselves, at least to show the way of thinking.
Reference (ref):
ref-1: http://www.outlookindia.com/magazine/story/professor-pow/294265
ref-2: http://www.ndtv.com/opinion/dear-jnu-students-we-fund-your-studies-not-your-politics-1277417
I am a twenty-nine year aged human, who tries to look things from his own view and always try to optimize the view with respect to ideal nature. I have completed early schooling at a village of West Bengal, hundred and thirty kilometres from Kolkata, and later completed B. Tech. in Chemical Technology, from University of Calcutta, in 2010 and since then, have been working in private sector chemical companies for process and technology development works. I lived and visited many places in India, because of my work requirement, and personal interest. During last one and half year, I have been living at Ankleshwar in Gujarat.