Sunday, January 23, 2011

The flip side of Tiranga

I have been intrigued by the recent ekta yatra of BJP to such an extent that i dreamed it yesterday night.I decided...enough is enough. I had to do something. I am confused. Why is there so much fuss about a political party hoisting our national flag on Republic day. Apparently there was more to it than appeared on the surface. So this is my mind speaking about the two facets of this coin.
The ruling party view
The ruling power i.e. the coalition of National Conference Party and Indian National Congress has its priorities set up high in order. They donot want to compromise on peace in the valley at any cost. The fear that this "Uncalled for" show of patriotism by some sections of the Bhartiya janata Party can prove to be fatal to the process of peace and prosperity in kashmir after a particularly "hot" summer. They fear that this might incite a reaction from the Separatist groups in the valley and it may disturb the peace building process. The chief Minister of J&K Mr. Omar Abdullah has his stand clearly cut-out. He would not let BJP set up divisive precedents. The other party members and journalists of Kashmir have repeatedly tried to dissuade BJP to hoist Tricolour at lal-Chowk by saying that The Tiranga is hoisted and will be hoisted at Bakshi Stadium then what is the need to Publicize the notoriously infamous lal chowk for the same. The politicians who want to showcase their patriotism towards INDIA are welcome to do so by joining the Flag hoisting at Bakshi Stadium. The people of Kashmir have been subjected to numerous tortures. They have been oppressed, the kashmiri pandits were forced to flee the valley, the separatists and the militants have rendered millions of lives in the valley at bay. At this point of time in a period of peace after 6 months of stone pelting, this period has come as a sigh of relief for the politicians and the people. So, as soon as they came to know about the plans of BJP, they decided to not let it succeed.
Meanwhile as we were talking about theseparatists , they have decided to oppose the Ekta Yatra by taking out a rally to the lal Chowk on Republic day. The separatist groups have decided to foil the attempts of any group to hoist the tricolor on lal chowk. They consider this a challenge to their existence.




The BJP Counterview


The propagator of this Rashtriya Ekta yatra i.e. the Bhartiya Janata Party, on the other hand, has a totally different story to tell. According to Lal Krishna Advani, the seniormost Leader of B.J.P. this yatra is a challenge to the separatists. He wants to "PROVE" that Kashmir is an integral part of India and not a special state as perceived by its NATIONAL FLAG AND CONSTITUTION. According to other sources, the BJP wants to show to the whole India that Kashmir is not a hostage of these separatist groups and there are political parties in India who will not succumb to pressures from these separatist groups as well as Pakistan. The BJP has been emphasizing on the fact that this Yatra is completely peaceful (so was said by Uma Bharti during eidgah tragedy) and they are also committed to bringing peace to the valley. The fact that what is the enthusiasm of BJP party workers towards this yatra can be highlighted by the fact that they kept sleeping while their train was returned from Maharashtra, making a mockery of the patriotism published so widely by them. Apart from this the Mr. Advani cites the example of Dr. Shyama Prasad Mukherjee who laid down his life in a prison (he was imprisoned by Sheikh Abdullah) to end the Permit system to enter Kashmir. The stand of BJP is further supported by the erst-while flag code which was enacted in Kashmir but now has been demolished. So, in order to re-instate the fact that J&K is an integral part of India against the proclaims made by the separatists and their allies, this is a reply to them. Thus speaks the B.J.P.


My view
Amidst this chaos and politics, the opinion which matters the most in a democracy has been unheeded to. My opinion. The common people's opinion. I am still confused over this debate and there has been no respite for me. The people opposing this yatra have their arguments ready and so have the people who are ensuing this. I wish i could take a stand on this but alas, i am too confused to take one. So , in view of the common Public Interest, should not Mr. L.K.Advani and Mr. Farooq Abdullah have a public Debate on a national channel. Being a citizen of India, it is my duty to work for the unity and integrity of the nation but is not peace and prosperity my right.

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