BlogMas 2019 Day Sixteen - Howdy, India?!

1969, Gujarat. 1980, Moradabad. 1983, Nellie. 1984, Delhi & Punjab. 1985, Gujarat. 1987, Meerut. 1989, Bhagalpur. 1989 Kashmir. 1990, Hyderabad. 1992, Bombay. 2002, Gujarat. 2013, Muzaffarnagar. 

2019, India.

I write this post from right to left today.

I write it for my people.

I write it for everything I stand for as an Indian - equality, diversity, secularism, democracy.

Let's look at simple equations.

students with paper boards and placards ≠ police with tear gas, ammunition, lathis

students hiding in washrooms ≠ police detaining students in stations with no contact with world

scared female students ≠ police sexually abusing female students

Our Prime Minister is a man who was banned from the States for ten years, in the wake of 2002 riots. He is a man who was subjected to a decade-long diplomatic boycott by the Britain.

The government in power right now is all of us who'd looked the other way.

The government in power right now is all of us who didn't vote.

Everything that is happening in the country right now is our own doing.

Monsters don't hide under our beds, they're out there in the open.

We created our own monsters, and they're only a reflection of all of our beliefs.

Remember, how the British implemented divide-and-rule for our country because of how secular, united, and strong we were as a nation even back then. They did it because nothing could shake us.

There's a monster in our home, again.

This time, it's one of us.

You don't have to be a liberal to know what is happening is irrefutably inhumane, criminal, unconstitutional, nefarious, undemocratic, and against the very belief of our foundation.

There is no Hindutva. There is no ideal Hindu subcontinent.

There is only India. And, India is diverse.

Any country is not defined by the God it prays to. It's defined by the people it houses.

And, if I'm going to be given the right to my citizenship only because the Gods I pray to appeal to those in power, the surname I hold, the colours I wear, the idols that sit in my house, appeals to those in power, then I want no part of it.

I play with colours on Holi. I light candles on Diwali. I eat biryani and seviyan on Eid. I eat plum cakes, and cut meat open on Christmas.

I'm not Hindu. I'm an Indian, and I'm all the religions.

And if my surname is the factor for my residence, then today, I happily revoke my religion.

I will happily pray to the universe, instead of the God I look up to, because I know, my God doesn't bless me with a right-wing ideology.

And, if you're inclined towards a religion, if you can't make a dispassionate judgement about the correctness of being a human, then your education is bogus, your existence in, and contribution in this world is a sham, and you're only a baggage.

Highest rape rates, ever.

Highest fuel rates, ever.

Highest inflation in rates, ever.

Highest unemployment numbers, ever.

Highest number of lies told by a PM to the world about our dilemma, ever.

Worst agricultural crisis, ever.

Lowest GDP, ever.

Lowest rupee value, ever.

Unprovoked attacks on unarmed people.

No accountability by the leader towards his own people.

Kashmir shut down.

Assam, and Bengal shut down.

Trans bill passed.
This bill is not anti-Muslim. This bill is anti-India.

My country is burning.

Your country is burning.

The Jews didn't didn't know the Holocaust was underway. 

We know our history. We know what's coming. And, we know right from wrong.

If you choose to be apolitical now, it's a privilege you're taking undue advantage of, and this will someday bite you, too. If you choose to be apolitical now, you're becoming a fascist, too.

If you choose to be apolitical, remember that collateral damage is just as big as the intended one.

This is the 21st century. The only religion ought to be known is of education, and love.

I'm not anti-national.

I'm anti-hate.

I'm anti-violence.

I'm anti-lies.

I'm anti-bigotry.

I'm anti-fascism.

I'm anti-NRC, anti-CAB.

I'm anti-genocide.

We chose the government. The government didn't choose us.

And, they need to be afraid of India.

The India that knows what's right.

At the stroke of the midnight hour, my country had awoken to life. And, my country will rise again.

Everyone still out there, please keep your eyes open, stay alert and be safe. In case you're in need of aid and shelter, get yourself to the nearest Gurudwara, they'll help you.

Until then.

Artist: Chris Phillips

Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas (because we're secular, and liberal),

A.