When passions desperately needed cooling : Part II
Monday, 4 February 2013
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When passions desperately needed cooling : Part I
“Today, when we have elected a person of their clan, we have been denied our voice in the political system. We have been betrayed. We have been stripped off our rights. Our hearts and souls have been plundered. We have been disempowered.
Tell me my dear citizens, should we let the course of our lives be decided by a handful of people behind closed doors who are neither accountable to us nor loyal to our community?”
The leader took a pause again, this time to wipe off the sweat that had accumulated on his forehead.
“Today, when we have elected a person of their clan, we have been denied our voice in the political system. We have been betrayed. We have been stripped off our rights. Our hearts and souls have been plundered. We have been disempowered.
Tell me my dear citizens, should we let the course of our lives be decided by a handful of people behind closed doors who are neither accountable to us nor loyal to our community?”
The leader took a pause again, this time to wipe off the sweat that had accumulated on his forehead.
The crowd started responding with even more violent cheers. The
hatemonger had, after all, stirred up the emotions. He continued in a stern
tone,
“My dear citizens, we are being trampled upon by people who have
arbitrary power over our lives. We have been confined to powerlessness and
poverty. The time has come to question these unresponsive and unaccountable
decision–makers. The time has come for us to rise and give them a befitting
reply for all the miseries that they have inflicted upon us.”
What had started as an enlightening speech was now turning out to be a
hate speech and this leader who had disguised himself as an activist to stand
up for the cause of the society had now unveiled his true face – the face of a
hatemonger. The aam aadmi who were
referred to repeatedly by the leader in his bitter diatribe, were left
trembling with horror and bemusement. The highly inflammatory and provocative
words that had been showered upon them triggered violent and uncontrolled
emotions to wreak havoc.
A few perverted minds teamed up with anti-social elements and took to
arson and rioting. A crowd that had been celebrating togetherness a short while
ago had suddenly turned into a lynch mob. The hatemonger had caused a
tremendous upheaval in the society. The social networking sites were soon
flooded with derogatory remarks and inciting texts. It was then the turn of
cyber criminals to display their skills. In a short span of time, a video that
showed beheading of people of a community went viral on the web and a SMS
threat was circulated through a portal with an intention to trigger a mass
exodus of people of the community of the ruling party, lest they face dire
consequences. There were widespread protests across the region leading to
massive loss of innocent lives and property. Everywhere angry mobs could be
seen carrying fire and swords and butchering anyone who seemed hostile to them.
The region that had been a model of communal harmony had now turned into a
cauldron of hate.
At this critical juncture when such intense emotions desperately needed
cooling, the administration offered to facilitate the exodus by offering
special trains to take the terrified crowds ‘home’ rather than reasoning with
them to stay back. Neither was the hatemonger arrested for the commotion he
caused, nor could the flames of hatred be doused. Indeed, the entire region
burnt in the furnace of hate.
So quick we are today to get swayed away by distorted facts presented
to us and take laws into our own hands that we almost do not even take a moment
to pause and ascertain these facts. Irresponsible and swift actions taken in
the aftermath of such incidents have always yielded catastrophic results. The need
of the hour is to identify all such malicious forces that intend to spread
hatred and disintegrate our nation along ethnic lines. It is necessary to bring
all such hatemongers to book who aspire to spread communal disharmony and award
them stringent punishment. Let us be more vigilant and summon our wisdom before
reacting to any irrelevant views and opinions doled out by some unscrupulous
self-created moral guardians of our society. Let us be more cautious before
taking any action and be aware of the repercussions the same might have in future.
JAI HIND
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