Three icons of our liberal and secular democracy were murdered in a span of two years, and yet, these incidents do not move us to action or empathy. Rather, we are all gripped by the Sheena Bora saga that is unfolding on every media platform for the last couple of weeks.
Three murders, in the span of two years, two in Maharashtra and one in Karnataka, of people who held views that contradicted ‘accepted’ views, executed professionally and prima facie by professionals, allegedly hired by fundamentalists opposed to their thoughts that questioned the very foundations of traditional rituals.
August 20th 2013- Dabholkar (65), a rationalist and social activist, was shot dead by two unidentified persons on the Omkareshwar Bridge near Balgandharva auditorium in Pune, while he was on a morning walk, around 7.15 am on August 20, 2013. The gunmen fired three rounds and fled on a two-wheeler. Dabholkar received one bullet in the head and died instantly.
Dr. Dabholkar, a doctor, was at the forefront of the anti superstition movement, through his 1989 established Maharashtra Andhrashraddha Nirmoolan Samiti. Dabholkar was also the editor of Sadhana magazine and travelled across the state and country for his anti-superstition campaign and faced severe opposition from a variety of social groups
February 16, 2015- Two motorcycle-borne men shot at Pansare (84), also a rationalist, an author, with an alternative view, and a left wing activist, and his wife Uma Pansare while they were on a morning walk near their residence in Ideal society, Sagarmal in Kolhapur, around 9 am. A bullet hit Uma’s head, causing a fracture in her skull. She survived but suffered from paralysis. Govind Pansare succumbed to his injuries on February 20.
August 31st 2015- Kalburgi (84), also a rationalist who questioned several religious practices, especially idol worship, was killed around 8.40 am on Sunday at his residence in Dharward. One of the assailants waited on a motorcycle while the other went up to ring the doorbell of Kalburgi’s house ostensibly as Kalburgi's student. Kalburgi’s wife opened the door. When Kalburgi came, the assailant opened fire at him and fled with his accomplice on a motorcycle. The two assassins remain identified, and the Chief Minister of Karnataka, Siddaramaiah, sensing a possibly unsolvable hot potato, quickly referred the matter for investigation to the CBI.
In none of these cases, have the assassins been identified as yet, though, in one case two years have gone by and in another six months. The police and the CBI are clueless so far. Kalburgi and Pansare knew each other, yet they didn't make common cause. However, there were lots of similarities, in the activities and thinking processes of the persons targeted, the modus operandi of the killers and the cluelessness of the law enforcement agencies. It clearly points to a conspiracy, either emanating from a single person or a group, which though, is not clear as yet.
What is clear, is that the group or the individual mastermind, is now emboldened by the cluelessness of the law enforcement agencies, and the killing may not be at an end. It's not really clear, if it is the lack of evidence that has slowed down the investigation or whether it’s been obfuscated by powerful forces. It does not even get the media mileage it deserves, which is more interested in Page 3 controversies like the Sunanda Pushkar affair, the Lalit Modi affair and now the Sheena Bora case, than cases that affect the progress or regress of democratic India. Sadly, such is the hold of TRP's and advertising over the media, and voyeuristic nature of readers and viewers in India.
Rationale and logic seems to have flown out of the window with a clear nexus between celebrity culture, politics and irrationality evident in all discourse. PK, the Aamir Khan film that exposed the miracle men, that are currently the rage in India, was also condemned, - luckily for the fair thinking common man, it was not banned, like many other things in India – It was a bold attempt to bring some rationality to the discussion, that is fixated on Miracle Men and Women from Radhe Maa to Asaram Bapu and Ram Rahim, the Messengers of God, who are perhaps more accepted than rationalists with logical and realistic alternatives.
It’s been evident in India for some time now, that political and social discourse is moderated progressively by rather right leaning groups, which draw their power from political and religious leadership, their numbers, and more often, these days, just plain fear, brought about by organized mobs or individual intimidation. This is apparent on both sides of the religious divide, be it the case of Salman Rushdie or Perumal Murugan, who merely commented on existing practices, as did Shoba De, and the four secular bloggers, who dared to air a different view, and were hacked to death in Bangladesh.
Wikipedia is what it is because it is constantly improved by contributions from many in society and that is why it has stood the test of time and is one of the most referred encyclopedias on planet earth. Even the oxford dictionary adds new words to its lexicon year after year, and democracy and society can only be enriched by an alternative discourse that brings new insights.
Sadly now, all indications are that dissent will die an early and untimely death, much like the rationalists, before it. The intellectual mafia is already at hand. The ban culture has already taken over, and the mistrust of dialogue, has created a need among intellectuals for self censorship to continue living itself, forget about contributing to the democratic discourse. The legal system, while it has tried its best, to uphold these democratic values, has not been equal to the task, in the absence of political will, to do the right things rather than always doing things right. Dissent is at first, tolerated, then suppressed and finally eliminated.
So are the fundamentalists and ultra conservatives insecure, afraid or overly sure of their position in society that they have to kill both, the alternative discourse and the source of it? Being insecure, would mean that they believe that the rationalists can win over a substantial majority of the traditionalists, while being afraid, means that they believe that they would lose their hold and influence on society that they have ingrained to think the way they are told to think, with not a thought beyond. I would suspect it’s a combination of all the three- insecurity, fear and a pricked ego.
All media reports about the murdered activists, referred to them as controversial. What is the message? That controversy is bad for our democracy, for our society and for our future?
You be the judge.
Three murders, in the span of two years, two in Maharashtra and one in Karnataka, of people who held views that contradicted ‘accepted’ views, executed professionally and prima facie by professionals, allegedly hired by fundamentalists opposed to their thoughts that questioned the very foundations of traditional rituals.
August 20th 2013- Dabholkar (65), a rationalist and social activist, was shot dead by two unidentified persons on the Omkareshwar Bridge near Balgandharva auditorium in Pune, while he was on a morning walk, around 7.15 am on August 20, 2013. The gunmen fired three rounds and fled on a two-wheeler. Dabholkar received one bullet in the head and died instantly.
Dr. Dabholkar, a doctor, was at the forefront of the anti superstition movement, through his 1989 established Maharashtra Andhrashraddha Nirmoolan Samiti. Dabholkar was also the editor of Sadhana magazine and travelled across the state and country for his anti-superstition campaign and faced severe opposition from a variety of social groups
February 16, 2015- Two motorcycle-borne men shot at Pansare (84), also a rationalist, an author, with an alternative view, and a left wing activist, and his wife Uma Pansare while they were on a morning walk near their residence in Ideal society, Sagarmal in Kolhapur, around 9 am. A bullet hit Uma’s head, causing a fracture in her skull. She survived but suffered from paralysis. Govind Pansare succumbed to his injuries on February 20.
August 31st 2015- Kalburgi (84), also a rationalist who questioned several religious practices, especially idol worship, was killed around 8.40 am on Sunday at his residence in Dharward. One of the assailants waited on a motorcycle while the other went up to ring the doorbell of Kalburgi’s house ostensibly as Kalburgi's student. Kalburgi’s wife opened the door. When Kalburgi came, the assailant opened fire at him and fled with his accomplice on a motorcycle. The two assassins remain identified, and the Chief Minister of Karnataka, Siddaramaiah, sensing a possibly unsolvable hot potato, quickly referred the matter for investigation to the CBI.
In none of these cases, have the assassins been identified as yet, though, in one case two years have gone by and in another six months. The police and the CBI are clueless so far. Kalburgi and Pansare knew each other, yet they didn't make common cause. However, there were lots of similarities, in the activities and thinking processes of the persons targeted, the modus operandi of the killers and the cluelessness of the law enforcement agencies. It clearly points to a conspiracy, either emanating from a single person or a group, which though, is not clear as yet.
What is clear, is that the group or the individual mastermind, is now emboldened by the cluelessness of the law enforcement agencies, and the killing may not be at an end. It's not really clear, if it is the lack of evidence that has slowed down the investigation or whether it’s been obfuscated by powerful forces. It does not even get the media mileage it deserves, which is more interested in Page 3 controversies like the Sunanda Pushkar affair, the Lalit Modi affair and now the Sheena Bora case, than cases that affect the progress or regress of democratic India. Sadly, such is the hold of TRP's and advertising over the media, and voyeuristic nature of readers and viewers in India.
Rationale and logic seems to have flown out of the window with a clear nexus between celebrity culture, politics and irrationality evident in all discourse. PK, the Aamir Khan film that exposed the miracle men, that are currently the rage in India, was also condemned, - luckily for the fair thinking common man, it was not banned, like many other things in India – It was a bold attempt to bring some rationality to the discussion, that is fixated on Miracle Men and Women from Radhe Maa to Asaram Bapu and Ram Rahim, the Messengers of God, who are perhaps more accepted than rationalists with logical and realistic alternatives.
It’s been evident in India for some time now, that political and social discourse is moderated progressively by rather right leaning groups, which draw their power from political and religious leadership, their numbers, and more often, these days, just plain fear, brought about by organized mobs or individual intimidation. This is apparent on both sides of the religious divide, be it the case of Salman Rushdie or Perumal Murugan, who merely commented on existing practices, as did Shoba De, and the four secular bloggers, who dared to air a different view, and were hacked to death in Bangladesh.
Wikipedia is what it is because it is constantly improved by contributions from many in society and that is why it has stood the test of time and is one of the most referred encyclopedias on planet earth. Even the oxford dictionary adds new words to its lexicon year after year, and democracy and society can only be enriched by an alternative discourse that brings new insights.
Sadly now, all indications are that dissent will die an early and untimely death, much like the rationalists, before it. The intellectual mafia is already at hand. The ban culture has already taken over, and the mistrust of dialogue, has created a need among intellectuals for self censorship to continue living itself, forget about contributing to the democratic discourse. The legal system, while it has tried its best, to uphold these democratic values, has not been equal to the task, in the absence of political will, to do the right things rather than always doing things right. Dissent is at first, tolerated, then suppressed and finally eliminated.
So are the fundamentalists and ultra conservatives insecure, afraid or overly sure of their position in society that they have to kill both, the alternative discourse and the source of it? Being insecure, would mean that they believe that the rationalists can win over a substantial majority of the traditionalists, while being afraid, means that they believe that they would lose their hold and influence on society that they have ingrained to think the way they are told to think, with not a thought beyond. I would suspect it’s a combination of all the three- insecurity, fear and a pricked ego.
All media reports about the murdered activists, referred to them as controversial. What is the message? That controversy is bad for our democracy, for our society and for our future?
You be the judge.
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