The Convenience Of Racism In The Name Of Taj Mahal
By Richard Kamei
20 November, 2013
Countercurrents.org
Northeast India hogs the limelight in recent years for positive as well as negative news. Mary Kom’s success story is seen as an opportunity to educate the rest of India about northeast India which so far is either neglected or ignored for reasons ranging from inaccessibility to the approach in the form of racism. The focus of northeast region post Mary Kom’s success at Olympic Games stopped at putting northeast as an exotic region to be explored by barring the deeper understanding of the varied cultures of different tribes and indigenous people, the political dynamics, the ecology etc.
So far, Northeast region is defined by guns, guitar and guerrilla warfare. The narrative of armed conflict spans across to every regions of northeast India; in recent years this goes against the aspirations of common people when they are meted with opportunities and issues at the same time. The centre trembled over the increasing attention of China on Arunachal Pradesh and on the other hand the centre has escalated the Look East Policy.
Need to pause here, in delving further into the narratives of northeast region to come to the point intended to highlight in this piece by mentioning a brief background on how northeast people are being perceived in the mainstream India. What is worrisome is when the racial approach towards northeast people is practised by the public authority. The onus on public authority towards northeast people comes into central focus last year when there was hue and cry over the exodus of northeast people from Karnataka and adjoining states. The immediate response was a cacophony for the call of unity and a reminder that northeast India is very much a part of India and got discussed at length in the parliament session headed by the main opposition party- BJP.
Harassment and violence against northeast people in the lens of racism are being practised by and large. The approach of public authority in the realm of racism against northeast people is not a new story. Pertinent to mention of the similar case when this approach is present in the monument recognised by UNESCO as World Heritage Site and regarded as one of the wonders of the world. The monument in question is the highly celebrated Taj Mahal, and the experience of my recent and first trip to Taj Mahal reaffirmed that racial approach against north east people is visibly felt and seen in day to day discourse.
Once there at Taj Mahal, racial profiling awaits us at the ticket counter for an entrance to Taj Mahal where we people with mongoloid features are asked to produce identity cards to prove that we are Indian and not foreigners, and this does not apply to other Indians devoid of mongoloid features because they are acknowledged to be Indian by its physical feature. The ordeal of racial profiling does not end at the ticket counter, the same is resonated with the security people at the entrance where they verbally inquired us whether we are from Nepal or China. The periodic chanting of ‘Unity in Diversity’ defining India died a temporary death. One uniform ticketing system for Indian and separate one for people from northeast India is the virtual message that conveyed out from the ticket counter.
Archaeological Suvery of India and Agra Development Authority taking charge of the tourism activity at Taj Mahal should take note of this that it is only north east people among Indians who produce identity cards to procure entry ticket to Taj Mahal. It may facilitate work in identifying Indians out of presumed foreigners to northeastern people and also an easy task in separating foreigners from Indians but the position from where I come from, this is nothing but racial profiling- a racism at one of its worst display. Northeast people are rather made to feel alienated by this production of identity card for they look different and this questions us of our Indian citizenry. In any way, to what extent do northeast people have to carry on proving that they are Indian? If production of identity card is necessary for security reasons, make that mandatory for every Indians at entry ticket counter for Taj Mahal instead of applying exclusively to northeast people.
It is not only to do with the position I come from to identify racial profiling, what if tomorrow I (or someone from northeast India) take charge of the ticket counter and ask the obvious Indians to produce identity card proving that they are Indians because I may have a doubt that they could be from Bangladesh or other neighbouring countries like Nepal, Sri Lanka, Pakistan etc.
Richard Kamei is M.Phil ScholarTata Institute of Social Sciences
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