Freedom of (cynical) expression!!

India is a mill of rows and disagreements. In some or the other ways, its society always manages to sneak into the realm of uncomfortable clashes. Sometimes violent, some times verbal while sometimes just pictorial too!!This time its about making cartoons!! No, wait not just about making cartoons but about booking the cartoonist under the charges those were leveled against Kasab, SEDITION!!

What we have been witnessing for the past decade is an increasing government - citizens divide. The parliament, bureaucracy, cabinet and- topping them- our own Prime Minister, all seem to have become so out of touch about the reality and alien to the people of the nation. I am sparing myself the space about how even the opposition has lost the respect for it with its own characteristic "too many Prime Ministers in-waiting" saga. No need to dwell on it since its not my focus at the moment. What this has created is a vacuum for Adrenaline-lovers to fill in with their magical tricks which can make people believe that these are  their new savior. All said and done, there is no denying fact that gigantic figures of public money (which I've stopped counting because of the fear that it will screw up my maths) elected representatives run away with, lack of leadership qualities, absolute policy paralysis and ill-thought but politically motivated advocacy the government is doing needs to be condemned out-right. But look at the political alternatives we are gifted with- barring the elected opposition. Third front? Team Anna? Aseem Trivedi? You want to portray them as hero? You gotta be kidding me!!

The cartoon portraying Ashok Chakra emblem where lions are replaced with blood dripping wolves, chakra is replaced by the danger (skull and crossed Humerus bones) sign with the bottom line "Bhrashtmev Jayate" is damn pathetic. This also speaks for the way people criticizing the corruption and cultural down-gradation are doing it just for the sake of adrenaline rush. Don't give me the examples of what's happening in Syria or how in US people can have bikinis of national flag. If their mentality suits you the most, check how quickly you can convert yourselves to their national citizens (or adopt dual citizenship so that you can save more tax) and wear the bikinis of national flags. You are better out of India asap. This is our own country and first try to respect that there should be no fooling around with national symbols. It's not the nation that is corrupt, but the people who are ELECTED and SELECTED by the very principals enshrined in the constitution are something we have problems about. It DOESN'T make CONSTITUTION itself "Bhrasht". Emphatic NO!! The constitution, the parliament, and national symbols are also representing the citizens of the nation and defaming these pillars of our democracy will mean nothing credible. I am ready to believe that there is nothing sacrosanct about the constitution and constitution itself is subject to change and modifications over a period of time. Ditto for national symbols. (I am equally fired up about throwing national flags on streets by the time dust settles after national festivals). However, it doesn't mean that these symbols can be vandalized at a free will. You definitely have freedom of expression but please ensure that you are observing your duty not to malign of defame anything indecently.

Now this brings me to the problem of leveling sedition charge against Mr. Trivedi. This is another example of ill-informed bureaucracy going all guns out like a platoon of school kids. What Kasab did was a sedition. Booking Mr. Trivedi under IPC is fine, if at all it is necessary, or a warning also would have serve the purpose. But this again confirms what I've said earlier, if you really want to spread the message of corrupt political establishment, why not play around with their party's symbols? Why not picture those people in your cartoons? I am not against cartooning things but I am very much agitated by the fact that people are fooling around with national symbols which are epitome of values and virtues Indian citizens relate themselves with. There is not point in venting the anger by picturing something like what Mr. Trivedi did. Instead I would have appreciated him more if he would have used the ruling party's symbol to point out how corruption ridden it has become.

We are the people who get really angry and get angry really quick if we see something wrong in front of us. We being to vehement our anger in the public space without considering the consequences or the points we are trying to make through such thoughtless destructive activities. This is true for "Team Anna". Sparing the fact that disregarding the country in worst possible epithets has really become a fashion these days (especially with those who are staying overseas in polished lifestyles), the kind of Tamasha team anna is playing over the last year, is a matter of grave concern. Along with most of the people fed up with corruption and cultural down-gradation, I also started following the developments and Anna Hazare's fast with great interest and hope that government might concede some space and might bring some people to the books bowing to the increasing public demand. But what transpired was childish and irresponsible display of emotions from BOTH the sides. Neither the government is ready to make powerful citizen's ombudsman bill that team anna is advocating nor Anna Hazare and co. are ready to make a powerful political party and start talking seriously about what are their plans to run the country. I am not the one who believes that declaring intentions of forming a political party is something Anna Hazare and co. (and yoga gurus like Baba Ramdev) should never contemplate if they are pure at the core. Come on..!! Every citizen has a right to make a coalition based on the principles he/she believes in. What's wrong with that? But look at what these folks are trying to do.. Repeated shows of "Amaran Uposhans" lasting for 4-8 days followed by departures from fast, gheraos, blaming the politicians and talking everything cynical but serious business!!

I don't want to pour a political thesis on the implications of this cartoon, but I just want to remind you that there is a frail lady in Myanmar who spent over a decade of her life in house arrest since she was making a case for democracy in her country. You need me to remind about who i am referring to and what I am trying to assert. But in the middle of this, a highly biased BBC correspondent comes with an article like this. Soutik Biswas only sees (or should I say, is paid to see?) a dark side about India and its developments. If there is a sati incidence in Bihar, BBC and Mr. Biswas are really quick to run a full-fledged story about it while successful space missions from ISRO (or ISRO's publication of finding ice on lunar surface) can be seen on BBC website after 8-12 painstaking hours. Ditto for Indian cricket team winning cricket world cup. Its like western media wants to portray India as still largely starved, impoverished, and under-developed intolerant state. This "white collar racism" is evident everywhere. But what surprises me the most is that even Indians start believing in those stories and start saying that India is reacting out of proportions. These people are forgetting something very basic about Indian mentality. In India, its not a common and respectable endeavor to project something which has earned very high respect of the society into something rubbish. People's perceptions may differ on where we should draw the line, but for me, there should be no tolerance for defaming national symbols. You can  of course, cartoon people directly responsible for the mess we are seeing, but please ask yourself what good you are achieving by mocking at national symbols. If you have to support what Mr. Trivedi did, there is a little difference between you and a cynical crook who understands and passionately follows nothing but hatred. And that, Mr. Good doer, is an abuse of freedom enshrined in the very constitution (or the emblem) you are mocking at.