We live in strange times – many of the people of our country are either hoodwinked into thinking a certain way, or too scared to really say what they feel. Large sections of the media have relinquished their primary role of fair reportage and constructive criticism and become cheerleaders of the ruling dispensation. Those in the public space largely toe the line; staying under the radar to prevent attracting unwelcome attention and retribution from the powers that be. At a time like this, actor Prakash Raj chose to speak his mind; leveling criticism against the Prime Minister and found that he would not escape unscathed for his effrontery.
The critically acclaimed, award winning actor is well known for playing menacing, negative characters. However, this time around, he was in the news for his remarks about the lack of any sort of reaction from Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the killing of Kannada journalist Gauri Lankesh; known to be a critic of the ruling party. He questioned how the PM not only did not react to the killing; he also did not react to the way her murder was celebrated by many on social media. Raj was clearly referring to the fact that many of those calling Gauri Lankesh abusive names and cheering her death were actually followed by the PM on Twitter (and still are).
Raj was speaking at an annual convention of Democratic Youth Federation of India; a students’ group, when he said “When we see these people going around acting as if nothing has happened, I feel like giving them the five National Awards I have won for acting.” Raj said that people can see through this acting. He averred that he wasn’t stupid and neither were the people; that the youth of today are not blind and that “the time has come for Modi to understand this”.
On the basis of a complaint by a lawyer, a Lucknow Court has registered a complaint against Prakash Raj. Raj however defended his stance and clarified that he was aghast that the PM follows abusive handles and remains silent. He said that he had differences with the PM on certain issues and was now paying the price for his honesty. He said he is not a coward; nor would he run away from his responsibility.
The ruling party’s IT cell is well known for its abusive troll armies who shut up anyone who dares offer a modicum of criticism towards the PM, the party, others in the government or any of their actions. Ad hominen attacks and abuse are common. Other supporters of the governing party have also come to believe that it is perfectly acceptable to be viciously abusive towards anyone they do not agree with. This has created a terribly disturbing; wholly anti-democratic atmosphere in the country – both online and offline. The sheer hate and vitriol of a tweet such as this (from a handle followed by Modi) is horrifying.
The government has cleverly quelled all criticism and dissent by convincing people that the nation is the government and that any criticism of one is also criticism of the other. By branding people anti-national, the government has not only successfully silenced voices of dissent; it has also effectively deflected legitimate questions about its policy, method of functioning and the accountability that it owes to people. Many now believe that the highhanded method of functioning of this government is not that different from the time of the Emergency.
The old saying says you can fool all the people some of the time and some of the people all the time; but you cannot fool all the people all the time. The government may try to distract us from real issues, deflect blame by resorting to whataboutery, mislead and even intimidate people. However, the last time I checked, India was still a functioning, breathing, robust democracy. As a citizen of this wonderful, brilliant, varied, chaotic country, I will always have the right to speak up when I see what I perceive as being wrong. Thankfully, more and more of my fellow citizens are realizing this.
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