I am sad and happy today. In support of the Indian farmers, I am not in a mood to celebrate this Republic Day. Millions of farmers are protesting peacefully for over two months in cold New Delhi against the laws designed to enslave them to the corporations.
Today, India’s constitution is in peril, and on this day 72 years ago, India adopted its constitution as a secular democratic Republic in the lines of the US constitution. We are not perfect, but we do have the makings and are proud and humble about it.
Under Modi’s rule, Indians don’t feel secure about their faith, ethnicity, and culture. Of course, most Indians don’t see that; they are safe and have no empathy, just as most Americans don’t see the anguish the African Americans endure daily.
As Trump fell, so will Modi in due course. The Indians will rise again and restore righteousness in the country.
We are proud of our heritage – a multi-faith, multi-cultural, multi-regional, and multi-linguistic society. We have come to accept and respect every which way people have lived their lives. For over 5000 years, India has been a beacon of pluralism – it has embraced Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Baha’i, and Zoroastrian faiths to include in the array of the indigenous religions; Hinduism, Jainism, Buddhism, and Sikhism.
Indian democracy “was” a shining example to the World before Modi came to power. The previous governments have peacefully transferred the powers. Indians are pluralistically secular and economically capitalistic. They believe in a “live-and-let-live” lifestyle, which is the essence of capitalism.
Since Modi came to power, India’s economy has tanked, his focus has been whipping up nationalistic feelings without providing jobs and food. He has become a cult leader; his worshippers care less about jobs or food but are pleased that he is beating up on the enemies he has manufactured out of fellow Indians. His appeal has been to the mean instincts of Indians.
To gain absolute power, he has poisoned the society, pitting one Indian against the other. He has not given any interviews or held any press conference since he entered the office. He is not accountable to anyone.
His focus is on enriching his friends Adani and Ambani in return for money stacked away in Switzerland or some such place. He is selling every public property and land to them without any accountability. Now he wants to destroy the farmers, and thousands of farmers are protesting today.
I am proud of my heritage and am proud to be an Indian-American, and I will speak out against what is happening to my motherland. I am optimistic that India will return back to its pluralistic ethos, and once again people will start living in relative harmony.
Mike Ghouse