South Asia Citizens Web

Meanwhile the props and the choreography, the aggressive nationalism and flag waving of Anna’s Revolution are all borrowed, from the anti-reservation protests, the world-cup victory parade, and the celebration of the nuclear tests. They signal to us that if we do not support The Fast, we are not ‘true Indians.’ The 24-hour channels have decided that there is no other news in the country worth reporting.

The anti-corruption campaign led by Anna Hazare and his team has evoked a very mixed response from the Left and feminists, between those who rule out any association with the movement and those who want to be part of it. The campaign has also drawn unequivocal support from the right wing Hindutva forces (Baba Ramdev and Sri Sri Ravi Shanker for instance). Feminists and other progressive people of various hues who want to engage actively with a campaign against corruption should insist that a robust pre-legislative debate is non-negotiable. We should participate and determine the terms of the debate, with the support of an informed and inclusive media, rather than recede into a docile presence on media screens, with anchors determining the terms of the debate and cameras doing a head count. Instead of allowing our presence to be used by the media as evidence of ’civil society’ support, progressive voices need to articulate the deep disquiet over a monolithic Jan Lokpal Bill that promises to be authoritarian.

An extremist takeover of Pakistan is probably no further than five to 10 years away. Even today, some radical Islamists are advocating war against America.

Remarks in the Supreme Court ruling of 1989 : “We want to put the anguished question, what good is the protection of freedom of expression if the State does not take care to protect it? … freedom of expression cannot be suppressed on account of threat of demonstration and processions or threats of violence. That would be tantamount to negation of the rule of law and a surrender to blackmail and intimidation. It is the duty of the State to protect the freedom of expression since it is a liberty guaranteed against the State. The State cannot plead its inability to handle the hostile audience problem. It is its obligatory duty to prevent it and protect the freedom of expression.”

Independent analysts have more often than not pointed out that religious influence in the military is more deep-rooted than the high command is willing to acknowledge.