WE THE PEOPLE
An Open Letter to Indian
Prime Minister, Dr. Manmohan Singh
Dear Dr. Singh,
You do not know me, and perhaps we will
never meet each other; yet I am taking the liberty of addressing this letter to
you. Partly that is because I am one of the 1.2 billion Indians who look up to
you to rule this nation of ours in our name- an ordinary, anonymous citizen
reaching out to his elected leader. Partly it is because, as a writer, I can
think of no better way to give vent to the sense of outrage I feel at the
recent rape and murder of a 23 year old woman in Delhi than to put my thoughts
down in words. However, it is also because, among all your peers in our
government, I hold out hope that you will have the integrity and courage to
bring about some real change. Unlike many of your peers, you do not owe your
position to the family name you carry or to favours traded in political and
business deals. So I hope that with your conscience unburdened by these, you
can demonstrate the courage that we the people demand of you. As an
undergraduate student of Economics, I watched with admiration as you removed
the shackles that tied down the Indian economy and set it on a path of
acceleration and development that it had never seen before. That took real
vision and courage but the challenge you face now will require perhaps even
more courage. However, the payoff will be much bigger because we will truly be
on the path to development not because of GDP growth numbers but when half our
population can live their daily lives in safety and security, without having to
worry about being thrown to the mercy of rabid animals like the six men who
brutalized the young woman in the Delhi bus.
What could you do? Here are three
thoughts for you:
1. Understand
ground reality and how deep the rot really lies. You lead a rarified existence,
as befits your status. However, there is no shame in getting one’s hands dirty
and understanding what is actually happening in the nation you govern. Great
rulers of our past like Akbar and Ashoka often ventured out in disguise to
understand what was on their peoples’ minds. Today, with social networking and
media, you don’t need to do that, but you do need to be in touch with what we
the people are feeling. If you had been, you would not have waited so many days
after the incident for your poorly edited and produced telecast to the nation.
If you had been, you would know that it is not just one ghastly incident that
defines the nature of the problem we face. Almost every ordinary woman will
have tales of catcalls, groping and harassment in buses and public places by
men who do it not just because they are barely civilized Neanderthals, but
because they believe they can get away with it. Even the six rapists in the
Delhi case cleaned up the bus and went on with life as usual, thinking they
would never be brought to task. When people talk of bringing about change, they
talk of changing attitudes and mindsets. I believe that will take time and
whatever we try by way of education and sensitization, there will always be
brutes like Ram Singh and his friends in any society. I believe that the cure
will start when they no longer feel they can get away with it. However to act
on it, you first need to understand just how deep the rot is and how strongly
we the people are starting to feel about it- with this young woman’s trauma
acting as the catalyst.
2.
Put
your own house in order. Even before you start trying to bring about change in
society, have the courage to change the very government you lead for change,
like charity, begins at home. Two of our Members of Parliament and six
legislators face rape charges, and a staggering 162 MPs (28% of the total) have
criminal charges against them. We the people refuse to be led by rapists and
criminals. Fast track these cases, and if found guilty, put them in prison
where they belong, not in the hallways of power ruling in our name. Make an
example of cretins like the legislator who made snide, sexist remarks about
`dented, painted women’ and women who go to discos not having the right to
protest. Yes, his command of the English language rivals his poor leadership
skills, but he has no business being in your government. Your party asks us to
`forgive and forget’ his comments, but we the people refuse to forgive or
forget any more.
3.
Take
decisive action. The six beasts who killed the young woman on the bus should be
tried and punished as fast as possible- let us not again have the pathetic
sight of the Indian judiciary taking years to process cases. For all I care,
these bastards can hang from the nearest streetlight- through their actions
they have lost the right to live in any civilized society. However, it cannot
and must not end there. What we need is for you, for those who rule in our
name, to take pro-active action. What we need is for exemplary punishment to be
doled out to rapists and molesters. What we need is for you to showcase that
nobody is above the law- not even government officials and legislators like the
ones who killed a serving police officer in Punjab when he objected to their
molesting his daughter. What we need is the fear of God to be put in the hearts
and minds of these brutes- for them to know that they will not get away with it
any more. Aamir Khan had an interesting idea- of `pre-emptive’ action- of using
plainclothes cops including women to ferret out these molesters and rapists and
to remove them from the streets. The softer side of things, the education, the
sensitization, the change in mindsets is needed, and will follow, but in the
short term, our system needs a shock. A shock to make people realize that it is
no longer business as usual.
The window for you to act is narrow. Not
just because you and your government will lose all respect if you do not, but
because if we the people realize that our elected leaders cannot protect us, we
will have to do it ourselves. Today, young people are protesting peacefully,
demanding action. Tomorrow, they will start taking action themselves. We all
know how that script goes- the police turned against the very citizens they are
sworn to protect, faith crumbling in the regime, chaos and vigilantism. It’s
played out in many countries, most recently in the so-called Arab Spring. I
would never wish that upon my country. India, for all its faults, is a nation I
love- because it is still a nation where people can speak their mind and not
worry about the midnight knock for their words, where ordinary people can
improve their lot in life based on their talent and hard work, and where faith
in democracy still runs strong. That’s what makes me believe in India- and
makes me scoff at comparisons to other so-called Asian giants where growth
numbers are high, but fundamental freedoms low. Please don’t shake that faith.
Please don’t make us question the basic premise on which Indian democracy
works, the premise that puts you in power to rule in our name. If not for
altruistic notions or motives, please at least make your peers act for fear of
self-preservation, something our politicians seem to be good at. As Thomas
Jefferson said, “When the people fear their government, there is tyranny; when
the government fears the people, there is liberty”.
We the people await your action.
Warm regards
Mainak Dhar
