Dictatorship of sycophants

(Communalism i.e. minority appeasement is on its peak... most of the English as well as so-called national media and the channels are out to "protect" the Congress party, which is most dangerous party of India. Majority is being targeted even if they are right in their demand, and at the same time minority is being caressed even if they do wrong... in this situation, a just - balanced public figures are rare. Mr. Arindam Chaudhuri is of late coming out one of such persons who can make some difference, hence putting his views that was published in the Pioneer daily - Alkesh) 

By - ARINDAM CHAUDHURI
The modern day Jallianwala Bagh at Ramlila Ground shows the demonic attitude of the Government, the weak spine of the Opposition and the hypocrisy of the media. Are we living in the world's largest democracy? Or has India become a shameless, unapologetic dictatorship of sycophants?
My question is, are we living in a democracy or in a shamelessly unapologetic dictatorial regime? Has the Government finally lost it totally? Or do they believe that the people of the country are so foolish that they will quietly accept any amount of dictatorship and vote them to power again in 2014? Is there absolutely no learning from the DMK’s huge loss in Tamil Nadu where it virtually controlled the media and yet people kicked them out? What happened on June 5 is a blot on our democracy. There is absolutely no exaggeration when people compare the incidents of the day to the imposition of Emergency or the Jallianwala Bagh Massacre. Today one doesn’t need to shove people inside a well and fire at them.
Descending on sleeping men, women and children, beating them up and taking the huge risk of a possible stampede and fire that could have killed thousands is Jallianwala Bagh. And this stinks of the thought process behind the Emergency.
Baba Ramdev has mostly raised very, very pertinent issues of national concern.
From asking the Government to ban the thousand rupee note (since that makes it 10 times easier to hoard black money than hundred rupee notes, a reason why countries like the US or the UK have the hundred dollar or hundred pound bills as the highest denominator for their currency) to asking the Government to bring back the $1.4 trillion stashed away in foreign banks (India has the largest pile of black money stashed abroad, the second being Russia with $400 billion, followed by the UK, Ukraine and China at the fifth place with $96 billion), the man is perhaps the only mass leader of the nation with a nationwide followership and someone whose remedies have benefited millions
of Indians for real -and they literally swear by him. Naturally, the Government had reasons to be scared -mighty scared, especially with civil societies around the world in a mood for rising in protest. So, to crush the mass movement that he was creating, they did what is unthinkable in a democracy and that too in the capital city of the country. The Government's actions are now a clear indication that it has turned demonic and is losing legitimacy to run the country with every passing day.
The incident also proves how spineless the Opposition, especially the BJP, has become. A strong Opposition would have, and should have, brought this country to a standstill till the Prime Minister tendered his resignation on moral grounds or at the least apologised for his demonic actions.
A strong Opposition would not have allowed the Prime Minister to shamelessly say that the police action was inevitable, or allowed Mr Rahul Gandhi to make statements to the effect that the Congress will not allow such protests.
What a joke in the world's so-called largest democracy. It is time that the BJP's leaders stop their infighting and show the Government its place. Had they seized this or the countless other opportunities this Government has been providing systematically, they would have been assured of a return to power. Not that it won't happen. But it looks now that if such a return to power happens, it wouldn't be so much because of the BJP but more despite the BJP.
It is sad and shameful that the Supreme Court of India, instead of giving a 24-hour notice to the Government to explain its actions against Baba Ramdev and his supporters, and taking stern action thereafter, gave a shocking 14-day notice to the Government to file its reply on the happenings. The Government was thus given enough time for manipulations and passing the buck.
But worse perhaps is the clear divide between ‘Bharat’ and ‘India’ that came across during this event. The Government wouldn’t have dared to take such action had the crowd consisted of middle class and upper middle class people. They had this audacity because the people who were there with Baba Ramdev represented the hapless and poorer sections of the country. Even the media followed the same thought process, despite the fact that a majority in the media are from ‘Bharat’ .
When the Anna Hazare movement happened, there were designer-dress clad residents of Delhi out there to support him, and the media went gaga. Yet, when the same common man who represents ‘Bharat’ took to the streets, the same media looked at the movement with suspicion and raised questions.
Finally, I just want to say that we live in a country that is proud — and often criticised — to have inherited its Constitution, laws and democratic framework from the British. Yet, it’s astonishing that one of the greatest virtues of British democracy is missing in our country. When you enter London’s Hyde Park and Parliament area, you see all kinds of protesters sitting around, staging all kinds of demonstrations. In New Delhi if one wants to protest, he is denied a place.
This is unbelievable. In the land of Gandhi, people who want to protest peacefully are being thrashed mercilessly and declared ‘tadipaars’ . This is not the democracy that Gandhi dreamt of. In simple words, it is a shameful and unapologetic dictatorship of sycophants. And it must end.
(The writer is a management guru and Editor, The Sunday Indian.)