Article 370: Amid Chest-Thumping Celebrations, Intelligentsia Reminds Modi Govt Of 'Democratic Process'
The entire attention of the nation has been drawn to the northernmost state whose native population has not been involved in the discourse that is going to have direct repercussions on them.
Over the past 48 hours, a series of unprecedented events that have culminated into the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Bill pushed by Home Minister Amit Shah, the entire attention of the nation has been drawn to the northernmost state whose native population has not been involved in the discourse that is going to have direct repercussions on them.
This has caused widespread resentment among some members of the intelligentsia, which includes some of the foremost rational thinkers, writers, artistes, poets and historians, as they have taken to Social Media to express their angst at the turn of events.
At the same time, there is an equal music from their counterparts, people from the same fraternity, who seem to have been overwhelmed by the decisive decision of Prime Minister Modi-led NDA government.
Historian Ramachandra Guha, the author of monumental biographies on Mahatma Gandhi criticised the arbitrary manner in which Article 370 was scrapped, warning the Indian population that opting to remain silent at this juncture could backfire.
¡°I'd like every Indian to reflect on the misuse of state power. What happened in Kashmir today, could happen in your state tomorrow,¡± said Guha, an internationally renowned historian.
A straight question: what do you think of shutting down an entire state and detaining former Chief Ministers before taking a fateful decision that affects that state and its peoples? What if it was our Karnataka next and not their Kashmir now? https://t.co/HY40xp5jG9
¡ª Ramachandra Guha (@Ram_Guha) August 5, 2019
Actor-activist Mona Ambegaonkar was also among those who expressed her disgust at the undemocratic manner in which the bill was hastily introduced and passed in the Parliament.
She compared the current events to the Emergency that was introduced by former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi and has been repeatedly used by Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led BJP government at the centre to criticise the Congress party.
Isn¡¯t this just like what had happened during the #Emergency when people were jailed & throttled into silence? At least, it had been declared openly then. Now the Cowards & Psychopaths pounce & lie without shame. #DemocracyInDanger https://t.co/qvdXsQKuSN
¡ª Mona Ambegaonkar (@MonaAmbegaonkar) August 6, 2019
Pratik Sinha, who has been leading a movement on the social media to debunk fake news and expose its propagators, too took to Twitter to cite the new definition of democracy as he sees it unfold before his eyes.
New definition of Democracy: Locking down a state, crippling all communication networks, not consulting with stake holders, bulldozing amendments.
¡ª Pratik Sinha (@free_thinker) August 5, 2019
But how long will you be able to maintain this new state of 'democracy'?
Those who keep quiet now, this will come back to bite you.
Noted publisher and editor at Bloomsbury Faiza S. Khan tweeted a moving poem but then deleted it, and posted the following tweet in a state of despair.
I have deleted the Auden poem I just tweeted. It struck me that you don't deserve him.
¡ª Faiza S Khan (@BhopalHouse) August 5, 2019
Writer-Historian William Dalrymple, one of the leading literary figures in the contemporary world, posted a series of tweets on Tuesday morning to register his dissent, and urging the Central government to let the Kashmiris be heard.
Let the Kashmiris be heard... pic.twitter.com/2UD62HGDh8
¡ª William Dalrymple (@DalrympleWill) August 5, 2019
Writer Manu S. Pillai, most recently of 'The Courtesan, the Mahatma & the Italian Brahmin' too took a dig at the central government.
"Using the Governor to sign off on a Presidential Order that fundamentally alters the constitutional character of a federal unit appears..to be straying dangerously close to the constitutional fraud line." https://t.co/pSJSVKjb44
¡ª Manu S Pillai (@UnamPillai) August 5, 2019
Data and Policy researcher Roshan Kishore noted that the present imbroglio is a reflection of how the BJP has re-crafted its Hindutva strategy post 2014.
#Replug something I wrote days after the BJP's 2019 victory. Decisions such as today's on #Kashmir are a reflection of how the BJP has re-crafted its Hindutva strategy post 2014, which is low-risk high-reward & also paralyses the Opposition https://t.co/UoffmTCihX pic.twitter.com/SuXfqjWc8C
¡ª Roshan Kishore (@Roshanjnu) August 5, 2019
Public intellectual Pratap Bhanu Mehta, who wrote a hard-hitting column in The Indian Express on Tuesday contended that the BJP thinks it is going to Indianise Kashmir but will instead end up Kashmirising India.
The BJP thinks it is going to Indianise Kashmir. But, instead, what we will see is potentially the Kashmirisation of India https://t.co/qVEhbJj6Qq
¡ª Pratap Bhanu Mehta (@pbmehta) August 5, 2019
Culture entrepreneur and founder of the Jaipur Literature Festival Sanjoy K. Roy had this to say.
The establishment of 2 new #UnionTerritories in the name of the people by their representatives in parliament is indeed a landmark. More so as the people in #Kashmir are still in the dark about their fabulous future!
¡ª Sanjoy K Roy (@SanjoyRoyTWA) August 6, 2019
While these are just a handful of prominent voices voices that took to Twitter to express their dissent at the manner in which the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Bill was pushed in the Parliament, their angst reached a new height as statements of Former J&K Chief Minister Farooq Abdullah, easily the tallest contemporary figure from the state, dominated the television screens in the later half of the day.
What Happened In Kashmir Can Happen In Your State Too: Ramachandra Guha https://t.co/ipWVuhKGNX #NDTVNewsBeeps pic.twitter.com/l4cKcOZAId
¡ª NDTV (@ndtv) August 6, 2019
Mr Abdullah accused the Home Minister of lying on the floor of the house in the parliament and said that he had been detained last night. He broke down while speaking to a television journalist but reaffirmed his faith in the democratic process and urged Indians to stand by Kashmiris in their hour of need.
¡°I feel sad that Home Minister of India can lie like this and say that I wasn¡¯t detained. I was detained in my house¡±: Former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Farooq Abdullah to NDTV
¡ª NDTV (@ndtv) August 6, 2019
Watch LIVE: https://t.co/hMlRpgak2y and NDTV 24x7
We stand by you as Indians committed to secularism and democracyhttps://t.co/ZIwhpRjqFU
¡ª Sitaram Yechury (@SitaramYechury) August 6, 2019
¡®Had to break the door¡¯: Farooq Abdullah on Amit Shah¡¯s ¡®no arrest¡¯ statementhttps://t.co/QZJjpI7LdK#Article370 #JammuAndKashmir pic.twitter.com/6j0shkgU63
¡ª Hindustan Times (@htTweets) August 6, 2019
Meanwhile former RAW chief A.S. Dulat was quoted by Pune Mirror as saying that there will be repercussions of the current moves, and we might see an upswing in violence ¡ª not just in Kashmir but just about anywhere.
However, it should also be noted that the intelligentsia too has been divided on such issues in the recent times as voices like Anupam Kher and Vivek Agnihotri step in to condemn the intellectuals for their overly liberal outlook on issues of national interest.
Here are some reactions from the intelligentsia that came in support of the government.
#WATCH Anupam Kher in New York: Today marks a remarkable day in the history of our great nation India. The most damaging #Article370 has been abolished by Modi govt from J&K. pic.twitter.com/em2C8Ys6Qi
¡ª ANI (@ANI) August 5, 2019
I like the way @AmitShah exposes hypocrisy without wasting time. pic.twitter.com/5kndH4Ix0B
¡ª Vivek Ranjan Agnihotri (@vivekagnihotri) August 6, 2019
The boldest decision of the Modi govt so far. Even more than DeMo, GST. Pre planning safety measures deserves special mention. As does keeping instigators of violence in house arrest. Well done. #Article370Scrapped
¡ª Chetan Bhagat (@chetan_bhagat) August 5, 2019
Since I was in school the debate on #Artical370 has been raging. While Kashmir burnt. Innocent lives lost. How did Article370 help? Let¡¯s now move forward as one people. One nation. With hope. Let people of #Kashmir share equally in the opportunity prosperity and growth of India.
¡ª Shekhar Kapur (@shekharkapur) August 6, 2019
Vande Mataram. Warmest congratulations. Great day. So proud to be in Rajya Sabha today. A dream come true. Long live @narendramodi ji & @AmitShah team.Bharat Mata is beginning to smile. @BJP4India @PMOIndia @nsitharaman @rajnathsingh @rammadhavbjp #Article370revoked #Article35A pic.twitter.com/hNP8Jx3AJ0
¡ª Sonal Mansingh (@sonal_mansingh) August 5, 2019
