Chai Chats with the Eichers: Fists that speak

Tuesday 16 February 2016

Fists that speak

The scene: the court room of one of the most prestigious legal benches in our national capital, and the grounds just outside the main building.

A high-profile case is going on. A left-wing student leader has been charged with sedition and arrested.

The press are present as are students and activists of the Marxist parties.

Being the court of law, so were many lawyers.

Now the shocker:

BJP MLA OP Sharma assaults CPI leader Ameeque Jamei outside Patiala House Courts, Delhi on 15.2.2016

(picture courtesy Indian Express - photographed by Ravi Kanojia)

BJP MLA Om Prakash Sharma assaults CPI leader Ameeque Jamei outside Patiala House Courts, Monday. (Source: Express photo Ravi Kanojia) - See more at: http://indianexpress.com/article/india/india-news-india/jnu-kanhaiya-kumar-patiala-house-court-lawyers-media-attacked/#sthash.OS7GYdGG.dpuf

A group of lawyers, along a prominent local BJP leader, descends on the students, activists and press persons … and beats them up!

Yes, you heard right. Black-suited-booted Lawyers. And the sadly increasingly normal ‘patriots’ who show their love for the country by beating up those they despise.

This takes place both inside the courtroom and outside. And the police on duty remain silent spectators to the whole tamasha!

Where is our country going, when in the heart of the capital, in front of the national press, men can strut their power and flex their muscles to cow down (oops something bovine has slipped in) those who they disagree with?

If this is happening in New Delhi, what is happening in Tikamgarh, and in Mount Abu, and in Muzzafarnagar, and in the countless little places that make up our 1.2 billion plus nation?

Listen to the words of the leader of the pack – one of the only two BJP elected members of the Delhi Legislative Assembly (ironically just over a year ago another party ‘swept’ the others out of office). This is what he said later: “Mein goli bhi maar deta agar bandook hoti. Koi Ma ko gaali dega to kya usey maarage nahin?” Loosely translated: “I would have shot them if I had a gun. If some one abuses our mother, won’t we beat him up?”

A senior police officer make these comments: ”there was a minor scuffle” and “excesses were committed on all sides.”

The question is not whether there was a ‘scuffle’ – the question is why police on guard in a court of law do nothing? And surely if there were ‘excesses’ (which sounds stronger than a ‘scuffle’) then our nation’s guardians of the peace should have been clicked in action as they waded in and settled the matter with their many years of training in crowd control and dealing with unruly situations.

The reality is our men in khaki are scared. Very scared. If this was a bunch of rag-pickers from the street who burst into the courtroom, the police would have jumped into action and hustled them out.

But those raising their fists and bringing them down on others are at the very core of power. The lawyers of the court. The members of the party ruling our country. And they are using their fists to enforce this power. And so the men in khaki will remain quiet, mute spectators, since they know which side of the bread the butter is on.

The people who have on behalf of our nation called the world to ‘make in India’ (and ironically had a high-profile evening in Mumbai last week literally go up in flames), the people who calling for global investments in India saying that ‘we have the skills, we have the commitment, we have the drive’ – are showing their true colours. And they have added black and blue to their till now rather monochrome palette.

Here are the words to shouting that went on yesterday at the august Patiala House Courts: the Rule of law be damned. We will enforce our will and might with our fists (or more if we have fire-power). And don’t cause trouble or you will be next. We can do this in Delhi with the press and the world watching. And we will do this in every place we are in control of.

And here are the words for the men in khaki who were silent spectators: Be quiet and don’t disturb those in power. We are not here for you. We are here for them.

Cry the beloved country.

Come Lord, come. Let justice and righteousness flow.

Tuesday 16 February 2016

Fists that speak

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