As soon as a coin in the coffer rings, a soul from purgatory springs”, a proverb attributed to Johann Tetzel who made a lot of money during the early 16th century by selling indulgences for monetary benefits and not using it as the innocent act of contrition that it was originally supposed to be. It meant that if one paid off the church, he/ she would be forgiven for the sins that he/ she committed or was going to commit in the future implying that in those days murder, rape and other such crimes were completely justifiable if the sinner was rich.
“Free speech for the dumb” is a song by British hardcore punk pioneers Discharge and is quite apt for the sheer mockery that certain ‘revolutionaries’ have made of one of the fundamental rights. In all fairness I didn’t have a problem with that, as I am of the firm opinion that retards exist in every strata of society. My blood began to boil when I read the headlines in certain newspapers and media channels, and statements made by politicians that glorified them as those who stood up for the downtrodden. I fail to imagine how people who screamed “Bharat ki barbaadi tak jang rahenge” can be given a free pass, let alone be elevated to the same pedestal as the legendary Bhagat Singh.
Initially, given the bureaucratic hooliganism our country is infamous for I was one among those who blindly supported Kanhaiya and his tribe. I must confess that I did not follow the case in real time due to prior commitments and my knowledge on the issue was attained primarily through online research, but on very reliable websites. I was on the verge of writing my next article criticizing the Indian government for using an iron fist on a bunch of students. Luckily the gods were on my side and I was fortunate enough to see a debate where a couple of students from JNU failed to come up with a straight answer when questioned about their “alleged” behavior.
I actually feel ashamed when I think about my close-mindedness for opining that politicians possessed limitless power and were invincible, and the realization that the media are the actual ‘masters of puppets’ was tragically enlightening. I painfully began to gauge the sheer power the press have and the way they could influence minds, especially in a country where a large chunk of the population are uneducated and ill-informed.
Of late there have been a lot of depraved tendencies to insert a communal angle to acts of crime and violence. I would like to throw light on the murder of Dr Pankaj Naarang in Delhi as an example. Dr. Naarang was mercilessly beaten to death by a couple of rash drivers because he reprimanded them for endangering his son’s life. Instead of proactively fighting against the tragedy of goondaism, a plague that should have been wiped out decades ago, certain sections of society decided to add a communal twist to the whole matter. The amount of verbal garbage spread was so dangerous that additional DCP of West Delhi Monika Bhardwaj had to come out on Twitter and state that the assault on Dr Naarang was performed with cold-blooded criminal intent and not due to differences of caste or creed.
Earlier this year in Malda, West Bengal when a religious outbreak happened against the derogatory remarks made against Prophet Muhammed, there was another entry into the cringe worthy list of cases having foggy details. On one hand you had a certain section of the media labeling the riots as a communal act of violence that commenced with a session of derogatory remarks made by members of opposing religious organizations and on the other you had a section who proclaimed that the communal angle perpetrated by the aforementioned people was nothing but a tactful mind game to cover up the destruction of the police station which contained evidence of the illegal opium cultivation fields and the fake currency racket in the place. This article is not trying to insinuate any allegations. On the contrary it has been written in sheer helplessness and to address the current predicament the country is stuck in. In all seriousness, what is the common man supposed to believe?
The wrath of ‘press’titution is most commonly found in matters related to health. About six months ago and well into my bone marrow transplant, I was introduced to an email from John Hopkins University which said that food items such as milk and chocolates (among countless other items) are carcinogenic and that they should be avoided. On reading this email I started panicking and wondered whether I could ever live a normal life. Out of sheer curiosity I went to the official website of the university and discovered to my utter dismay that the mail was a hoax. Some people just want to watch the world burn.
People have been manipulated, especially in our country by third rate external influences since biblical times. With rumours of media channels and newspapers being backed by political honchos doing the rounds what do the people do? How do we vote for the right party? Is ‘Incredible India’ a dream? Will hamaara Bharat ever be mahaan?
