Identity and crises

These days nationwide protest is going on against institutional murder of Dalit scholar. He committed suicide because of the hostility he faced since he and his friends opposed and condemned the Yakub Menon’s hanging and screened Muzzafarnagar baki hai in the campus. The most unfortunate part of this protest is that no political party is leading the protest. It is lead by activists and students only.

As read about caste, class atrocities, I feel more hallowed, I feel smaller. I know I can never understand their agony. This thought came to my mind on 24 Janury, 2016 around 11:00 pm, to be precise.

I was to leave for Patna on 26 January 31, 2016, for a workshop. My roommate was more fearful than me. She told me, you did not get better day than this to travel. Her fear emerged out of her concern for me. I was confused that why she was so scared. She happens to be a Muslim and she has some valid reasons for her fears.

It came to me as shock, when my Muslim friends told me they do not roam on days of national importance, because they fear interrogation and suspicion by authorities. My roommate told me her relatives have been detained in past for no reason other than being Muslim.

I was about to fall asleep, when she said to me a sentence, a sentence which I don’t think ,I would be able to forget in my life, She said to me “You are Hindu ,you need not to worry”. My heartbeat fastened and I was speechless. Her honest words made me uncomfortable with my identity that I carry.

When I reached airport, I saw security personnel checking, rechecking the voter id card of a Muslim man. He noted details from his identity card. This was an appalling sight for me. Nobody rechecked my identity card. My friend’s words echoed in my brain and I grew restless.

On airport entry gate I read very ridiculous statement “barud aur hthiyaar le jaana nished hai” “taking weapons and bombs is prohibited.” Well anyone can tell that is there a place in the world where is it permitted to take weapons? The country is so ultra sensitive. By inculcating jingoism in minds of citizens and security personnel, this nation has just harmed itself.

While I might stand in solidarity with Rohith Vemula, and mourn hanging of Yakub Menon, but I couldn’t simply feel what they have witnessed in their lives. The plight and crises that their identity brought to them

I was never asked to prove whether I am an Indian. I was never denied a home because of the caste or religion. I was never interrogated too much or was humiliated savagely. I was never asked to clean the toilets in my school. I can never understand what discrimination is, for my identity was never a burden for me, but was a privilege. It is still and over the years I have failed to acknowledge my privilege.

The pith of being human lies in understanding, other human being. I don’t know how many years it would take for humanity to learn this simple principle.

Our country was formed on secular lines and the Constitution of India is the most concrete evidence for the same. How, then we became communal and sectarian. For years Muslims, dalits, tribals and other marginalized communities have discriminated in the country .The fact they never asserted their rights or rebelled, this was unfortunately called ‘tolerant’ culture of the country. Now when the group has started reclaiming their identity and space in education, society, politics, suddenly ‘the so called tolerant’ culture has been threatened and gatekeepers feel we have become intolerant. Anyone goaded for this long, ought to get out of patience. The current government, which is a fascist force, paints everyone as anti national, whosoever seems to disagree with their politics and ideology.

Why there is no much hatred amongst communities of the same nation. This hatred comes and indifference emerges from distance and not getting to know each other .Because we never live with Muslims or Dalits or people from North-east, we tend to stereotype them. These stereotypes give birth to prejudices. Thus comes seclusion, Muslims are forced to live in ghettoes. Politicians have politically exploited them for votes, but merely by reservations mainstreaming doesn’t happen. You need to change your attitude as well which prevents you from befriending them

Writing this sentence has become banal, but I have to write. India is a living paradox, country that boasts of unity in diversity through superfluous words, gets uncomfortable with people who are in minority or practice different faith. Before going gaga over economic indexes, we should be reflecting on our diversity indexes. State and its majority citizenry has attacked Muslims and other minorities. This fascist government is doing damage to education by saffronising it. If the earnest citizens of country do not agitate, the damage could be irretrievable.

Our country was formed on secular lines and the constitution of India is the most concrete evidence of the same. But then how we became communal and sectarian .For years Muslims, dalits, tribals and other marginalized communities have discriminated in the country .The fact they never asserted their rights or rebelled , this was unfortunately called ‘tolerant’ culture of the country. Now when this group has started reclaiming their identity and space in education, society, politics, suddenly ‘the so called tolerant’ culture has been threatened and we have become intolerant. The current government, which is a fascist force, paints everyone as anti national, whosoever seems to disagree with their politics and ideology.

It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that coming to Jamia and living in Okhla, is perhaps till now most secular event of my life. I interacted with Muslims so intimately for the first time in life. There are similarities and there are differences, but I never feel alienated .I am getting to know them better by each passing day and I am loving it.