India Republic Day -- For many Indians who take pride in their constitution and the recognition of their region as the worlds largest democracy a sense of despondency is placing in.
Last January all around Republic Day attention seemed to be focused on the women of Shaheen Bagh. Their peaceful round-the-clock picket protest organised typically under tents in the small but bitter Delhi winter months was awakening the connaissance of the country inspiring protestors from all walks of life to stand up for Indias constitutional commitment to secular principles. Activists poets and countless ordinary people committed to inclusion within the tradition of satyagraha perfected by Mahatma Gandhi were being opposing amendments to the citizenship law which sought to segregate refugees by foi to be eligible for Indian citizenship. Their protest which might appear like a distant memory now
adays was cut short by way of a brutal riot police attack and a hard COVID-19 activated lockdown.
A year later the quest of the present national govt to craft a New India has instigated a different massive peaceful mass mobilisation that flows across faith based and regional lines. Growers and their supporters are profoundly apprehensive about three interrelated legal guidelines designed to alter the character of markets for agricultural make with implications to benefit the particular interests of big business at the expense of small and limited cultivators. The laws were being hurriedly drawn up and moved through parliament with unnecessary haste and without proper discussion about their implications on both livelihoo
ds and states rights through agricultural activities which are precariously balanced with the remit from the Central government in the constitution.
Indias Republic Day activities are an occasion to celebrate in the rituals of democracy whose norms are carefully laid out in the constitution officially adopted on January 28 1950. The constitution themselves derives its core principles from the countrys inspirational independence struggle. Principal among these are generally justice liberty and equality along with the promotion of fraternity.
For many
Indians - in your house and abroad - who have take pride in their constitution along with the recognition of their country as being the worlds largest democracy feeling of despondency is setting in.
The proverbial facts converse for themselves. The CIVICUS Monitor a participatory platform methods that the state of social freedoms globally ranks India in the repressed category on account of the poor protection of the liberties of expression association and also peaceful assembly enshrined within the chapter of fundamental legal rights in the constitution. The Reporters Without Borders Press Freedom Index ranks India in a lowly 142 out of 200 countries covered. Freedom Property which measures the state of democracy worldwide lamented that the region received the largest score drop among 25 of the planets biggest democracies in its Freedom in the World 2020 report. Among the reasons listed are the Central governments unilateral annulment from the semi-autonomous status of Jammu and Kashmir and limitations on freedom of movement and also internet shutdowns there.
Furthermore Indias civil society which often helps shore up its democracy stands beleaguered nowadays. Several peaceful activists such as social justice advocates education and student leaders are already questionably detained using security laws and are languishing in pre-trial detention for their refutation of constitutional values. Educado society organisations that market rights justice and equality are facing unprecedented issues from restrictive laws this limit their ability to work and raise funds. Illustratively Amnesty International the planets pre-eminent human rights movement has been hounded and baited in the country for its monitoring of rights violations. Its offices have been raided and staff harassed.
The acid test of democracy is whether everyone can exhibit democratic dissent without concern with persecution. Strict scrutiny of critical voices and deepening divisions in society together sectarian and ideological outlines are fraying the public fabric of the country and also tarnishing its image within the international sphere. They should be a matter of deep concern for anyone with an interest in seeing the country prosper.
Through the years Indias diplomats are already able to point to the countrys vibrant civil society as evidence of its commitment to inclusive governance and preparedness to take on leadership roles within the international sphere. During the height of the anti-colonial struggles within the second half of the 20th centuries India was viewed as some sort of beacon of democracy and also hope for freedom movements all over the world. Indias constitution provided the particular blueprint for many newly distinct countries to frame democratic governance in the second half of the twentieth century. In the present scenario Indias ability to speak with reliability in defence of democratic values on the international level has been eroded. This has benefits for the countrys participation in multilateral institutions where marketing and protection of global norms are crucial.
Republic Days are in essence festivals of democracy. Floats depicting ethnical life from different parts of India are a key aspect of colourful Republic Day parades. That they are designed to remind Indians this everyone regardless of faith or perhaps identity has a place in the particular union. January 26 should indeed be a day to celebrate the primacy of the constitution and the forfeit of those who helped gain our democracy and shield it every day. Four days after Republic Day upon January 30 India will probably be marking Martyrs Day which is the solemn anniversary from the assassination of Mahatma Gandhi in 1948 by a faith based zealot. Its a stark memento of the perils of ideological fanaticism.
The constitution provides routes to accommodate various points of look at. Its adoption by a newly independent India still moaning under the weight of solariego and caste oppression seemed to be an exercise in hope designed to give wings to goals for democracy and equality. Today that very democracy appears fragile. Many who don't agree with the actions of the govt of the day are demoralised.
Nevertheless another path is available to Indias political leadership. A change in course is still likely - the constitution mandates it.
