One of the most major impediments which has not allowed India’s polity to reach greater levels of maturity and purpose, since sixty-seven years of Independence, is the growing divisiveness within.
And its rising proportions are becoming unashamedly visible in our public spaces, inside our organisations and, more importantly and sadly, among all political parties, old and new.
The slander and abuse thrown from one politician to the other during the nation’s 2014 General Elections to constitute the 16th Lok Sabha (House of People) have been visible to all, thanks to television. The flames of intolerance and opinionated views are telecast every day and suffered by right-minded and sensitive citizens across the country.
Debates have become shouting matches in Parliament and actions have become plucking and hurling of microphones in our legislative assemblies. Agreeing to disagree has become ranting caught in real-time debates on prime time news, where the anchors are either not qualified to play referees, or display helplessness to secretly keep the ruckus going in order to retain viewership, or are caught unawares by well-prepared, vitriolic personalities.
In a programme on television channel NDTV, which debated the meaning of nationalism, senior politician Jaswant Singh said, ‘…we have become so much smaller in mind, that we just simply cannot accommodate a different viewpoint. How can we construct the nation?’
While participating in a televised debate on how disruption of both houses of Parliament had become rampant, a senior professional-turned politician from the leading opposition party blatantly said that his party engaged in such protests to rouse the anger of the people of India against the ruling coalition.
If this is the dangerous emotion that a well-educated politician, in a position of great responsibility, supports to incite, then imagine what the not-so-well educated ones have been doing so far—especially those who come under the scanner of criminalisation of Indian politics.
The rioting that took place in August 2013 in the Muzaffarnagar district of the State of Uttar Pradesh, is reported to have worsened due to hate speeches given by politicians belonging to few political parties. Most of those suspected were caught on camera while making such speeches and this is scathing evidence of the potent impact of any act of divisiveness.
Some celebrate the division of a State, like in the case of Andhra Pradesh, while others decry it; but our approach towards creating a separate entity from an existing State appears more divisive than one espousing the logic of division.
New political parties being formed and new alliances forged with intertwining and almost-common agendas seem to be making it even more difficult to decide on which party or coalition to support for an already-confused electorate. Yet many functionaries of political parties engage in vitriolic behaviour to give a distinction to their organisations.
We talk of intrusions on our borders, of terrorism, of anti-social and anti-national forces within our country, but those who are doing more damage are roaming free and mingling with everyone on the streets, in institutions and reputed organisations—like tinderboxes ready to ignite the flames of intolerance the moment something divergent is heard or learnt and unknowingly or knowingly identifying themselves with divisive forces.
Is this what our freedom fighters fought for and why our soldiers keep vigilant at night so that we can sleep soundly? Do we want our young minds to absorb and mimic the divisiveness they are witnessing as they step into the world? Is this what we wish to offer on a platter to those wicked forces which want to spill the blood of our citizens and bring chaos to our much-loved, but challenged democracy?
Divisiveness, it seems, is an intimate part of Indian history and this trait perhaps remains entrenched in our psyche. If this is true, then it strongly necessitates for us to guard against falling prey to this trait in ourselves and in others.
Indian history is replete with examples of how divisiveness among rulers and the ruled led to the conquest and subjugation of parts of the Indian sub-continent. Our history also points out instances where divisiveness led to intrusions of plundering hordes and the ruin of a land which was once known as the “Golden Sparrow”.
Have we not learnt enough from our history and our past mistakes?
The trait of divisiveness could also lead to other negative behavioural patterns. Though not directly in this context, in his book Ignited Minds, renowned scientist and former president of India Dr. Abdul Kalam quotes Sir C.V. Raman from a talk that he gave to young graduates in 1969 as saying, ‘We have, I think developed an inferiority complex. I think what is needed in India is the destruction of that defeatist spirit. We need a spirit of victory, a spirit that will carry us to our rightful place under the sun, a spirit which can recognise that we, as inheritors of a proud civilisation, are entitled to our rightful place on this planet’. Dr. Kalam in his own words in the same book says, ‘The greatest danger to our sense of unity and our sense of purpose comes from those ideologists who seek to divide the people’.
Writing on another negative behavioural pattern arising from the trait of divisiveness, author Gurcharan Das says in his book India Unbound, ‘Poor teamwork is pervasive in India. Take any institution, scratch its surface and one finds factionalism. Whether it is a company, a university, a hospital, a village panchayat, or a municipal board, it is beset with dissension, and it affects national competitiveness. What is the cause of our divisiveness?’
A key reason why divisiveness has penetrated many aspects of our polity and continues to rise unabatedly is because a large part of our leadership has been clinging to the notion that the end justifies the means. Those adhering to this notion will not stop at anything to achieve something. And it is no secret that many times that something desired is out of greed—greed for power, greed for authority or greed for money, or for all of these. If there was another vital thing that the father of our nation, Mahatma Gandhi, wished to teach our polity, apart from the powerful concept of ahimsa or non-violence, it was that the ends do not justify the means and that the means are as important if not more important than the ends. In fact, his adherence to non-violence showed his sensitivity to the means. Many would dismiss this as being idealistic or not possible at all times. However, not just Gandhi, but other great leaders of the world who emulated him, proved that this thought and focus forms the bedrock of right action.
It would help leaders in India’s polity to vigorously keep the following in mind: Lead by example without becoming self-righteous, be totally intolerant to any form of divisiveness even if it is from within or from the top, be a part of a movement to transform India into a meritocratic society, continuously question the means being used towards the end and flesh out the negatives that the means could give rise to or cause, and cultivate respect in oneself and others for the perpetuation of a peaceful and mature co-existence than one based on divide and rule.
Nearly every important area in the country that we look at today is in a crisis—the economy, the political landscape, national security, energy security, gender equality, equality among citizens and security at our borders.
Whether one is in a position of power or an ordinary citizen, it is time that we focussed our attention on the rising tide of divisiveness in the country and do whatever possible to stop it.
Copyright © Tarun Dalaya, 2014
And its rising proportions are becoming unashamedly visible in our public spaces, inside our organisations and, more importantly and sadly, among all political parties, old and new.
The slander and abuse thrown from one politician to the other during the nation’s 2014 General Elections to constitute the 16th Lok Sabha (House of People) have been visible to all, thanks to television. The flames of intolerance and opinionated views are telecast every day and suffered by right-minded and sensitive citizens across the country.
Debates have become shouting matches in Parliament and actions have become plucking and hurling of microphones in our legislative assemblies. Agreeing to disagree has become ranting caught in real-time debates on prime time news, where the anchors are either not qualified to play referees, or display helplessness to secretly keep the ruckus going in order to retain viewership, or are caught unawares by well-prepared, vitriolic personalities.
In a programme on television channel NDTV, which debated the meaning of nationalism, senior politician Jaswant Singh said, ‘…we have become so much smaller in mind, that we just simply cannot accommodate a different viewpoint. How can we construct the nation?’
While participating in a televised debate on how disruption of both houses of Parliament had become rampant, a senior professional-turned politician from the leading opposition party blatantly said that his party engaged in such protests to rouse the anger of the people of India against the ruling coalition.
If this is the dangerous emotion that a well-educated politician, in a position of great responsibility, supports to incite, then imagine what the not-so-well educated ones have been doing so far—especially those who come under the scanner of criminalisation of Indian politics.
The rioting that took place in August 2013 in the Muzaffarnagar district of the State of Uttar Pradesh, is reported to have worsened due to hate speeches given by politicians belonging to few political parties. Most of those suspected were caught on camera while making such speeches and this is scathing evidence of the potent impact of any act of divisiveness.
Some celebrate the division of a State, like in the case of Andhra Pradesh, while others decry it; but our approach towards creating a separate entity from an existing State appears more divisive than one espousing the logic of division.
New political parties being formed and new alliances forged with intertwining and almost-common agendas seem to be making it even more difficult to decide on which party or coalition to support for an already-confused electorate. Yet many functionaries of political parties engage in vitriolic behaviour to give a distinction to their organisations.
We talk of intrusions on our borders, of terrorism, of anti-social and anti-national forces within our country, but those who are doing more damage are roaming free and mingling with everyone on the streets, in institutions and reputed organisations—like tinderboxes ready to ignite the flames of intolerance the moment something divergent is heard or learnt and unknowingly or knowingly identifying themselves with divisive forces.
Is this what our freedom fighters fought for and why our soldiers keep vigilant at night so that we can sleep soundly? Do we want our young minds to absorb and mimic the divisiveness they are witnessing as they step into the world? Is this what we wish to offer on a platter to those wicked forces which want to spill the blood of our citizens and bring chaos to our much-loved, but challenged democracy?
Divisiveness, it seems, is an intimate part of Indian history and this trait perhaps remains entrenched in our psyche. If this is true, then it strongly necessitates for us to guard against falling prey to this trait in ourselves and in others.
Indian history is replete with examples of how divisiveness among rulers and the ruled led to the conquest and subjugation of parts of the Indian sub-continent. Our history also points out instances where divisiveness led to intrusions of plundering hordes and the ruin of a land which was once known as the “Golden Sparrow”.
Have we not learnt enough from our history and our past mistakes?
The trait of divisiveness could also lead to other negative behavioural patterns. Though not directly in this context, in his book Ignited Minds, renowned scientist and former president of India Dr. Abdul Kalam quotes Sir C.V. Raman from a talk that he gave to young graduates in 1969 as saying, ‘We have, I think developed an inferiority complex. I think what is needed in India is the destruction of that defeatist spirit. We need a spirit of victory, a spirit that will carry us to our rightful place under the sun, a spirit which can recognise that we, as inheritors of a proud civilisation, are entitled to our rightful place on this planet’. Dr. Kalam in his own words in the same book says, ‘The greatest danger to our sense of unity and our sense of purpose comes from those ideologists who seek to divide the people’.
Writing on another negative behavioural pattern arising from the trait of divisiveness, author Gurcharan Das says in his book India Unbound, ‘Poor teamwork is pervasive in India. Take any institution, scratch its surface and one finds factionalism. Whether it is a company, a university, a hospital, a village panchayat, or a municipal board, it is beset with dissension, and it affects national competitiveness. What is the cause of our divisiveness?’
A key reason why divisiveness has penetrated many aspects of our polity and continues to rise unabatedly is because a large part of our leadership has been clinging to the notion that the end justifies the means. Those adhering to this notion will not stop at anything to achieve something. And it is no secret that many times that something desired is out of greed—greed for power, greed for authority or greed for money, or for all of these. If there was another vital thing that the father of our nation, Mahatma Gandhi, wished to teach our polity, apart from the powerful concept of ahimsa or non-violence, it was that the ends do not justify the means and that the means are as important if not more important than the ends. In fact, his adherence to non-violence showed his sensitivity to the means. Many would dismiss this as being idealistic or not possible at all times. However, not just Gandhi, but other great leaders of the world who emulated him, proved that this thought and focus forms the bedrock of right action.
It would help leaders in India’s polity to vigorously keep the following in mind: Lead by example without becoming self-righteous, be totally intolerant to any form of divisiveness even if it is from within or from the top, be a part of a movement to transform India into a meritocratic society, continuously question the means being used towards the end and flesh out the negatives that the means could give rise to or cause, and cultivate respect in oneself and others for the perpetuation of a peaceful and mature co-existence than one based on divide and rule.
Nearly every important area in the country that we look at today is in a crisis—the economy, the political landscape, national security, energy security, gender equality, equality among citizens and security at our borders.
Whether one is in a position of power or an ordinary citizen, it is time that we focussed our attention on the rising tide of divisiveness in the country and do whatever possible to stop it.
Copyright © Tarun Dalaya, 2014
