As years pass by, we expect Indian democracy and the state to mature, creating more space for the citizens to enjoy freedom of speech and right to express descent and Civil liberties. But the history of Indian state speaks a different story. As years pass by the Indian state is becoming more and more repressive.
ALEX TUSCANO
India was invited to be present at the G 7 meeting as a guest. Mr. Modi spoke to the G 7 meeting he said “Democracy, freedom and liberty is part of India’s civilizational ethos.”
Arfa Khanum Shervani commenting on this asked, “why does Modi tell lies even to the international forum like G7 meeting? Modi has reduced or tried to finish democracy, freedom and liberty in India.” Taking from Kashmir, strike against CAA, farmers’ agitation, Modi has deprived people the freedom of speech and use of internet.” If Modi upholds the ethos of India’s civilization, then why does not uphold the same ethos for the citizens of India. She has further elaborated how the Modi government has destroyed the institutions of Indian Democracy. Other parties have been outspoken about the destruction of the Institution of Indian democracy under the present rule.
When the Indian State and Indian Democracy is going down the hill it may be a good idea to spend some time to reflect on it and arrive at some clarity. What is the State? The state constitutes the following institutions:
▪ The Constitution of India: Soon after independence the leaders of India constituted a constituent assembly. The members of this assembly were drawn from the eminent citizens of India representing different castes, communities and religions. Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar was the chairperson of the constituent assembly. He was extremely brilliant and a legal luminary of our country. Commenting on the work of the constituent assembly, Jawahar Lal Nehru said, “… the real work of this constituent Assembly, that is, the high adventure of giving shape, in the printed and written word, to a Nation’s dream and aspiration.”
The Constitution of India lays the foundation of Indian State and its social, political and economic life. It gives guidelines for the life of the Nation. Every elected politician, the ministers and everyone in the administration of the country take oath in the name of the constitution promising to uphold it.
▪ The second institution of the Indian state is the judiciary. The judiciary enjoys independence from the political rules and every other institution of the State. The Judiciary is answerable only to the Constitution of India. Its responsibility is to dispense justice to every citizen of India.
▪ The next most important institution of the Indian State is the Parliament. The members of the parliament are elected every five years and the party that enjoys majority forms the Government. The Government of the day functions under the guidance of the constitution and the confidence of the Parliament.
▪ Another important institution of the State is The President of India and the Governors of the states and the bureaucracy. These are constitutional posts and they are accountable to the constitution.
▪ Finally, The Defense (Arms) forces, the police, security forces constitute the next component of the state.
The state is supposed to function to fulfill the dreams and the aspiration of the Indian Citizens guaranteed by the constitution.
From the first parliament and the government under the leadership of the Prime Minister Nehru and Lal Bahadur Shastri the state was living to its ideals, namely, working for improving the living conditions of the people and ensuring democracy, liberty and freedom of expression. There are innumerable examples and anecdotes, which bring out the noble character of the government and the Indian State of the bygone days.
Undermining the Democracy of India
There was one case that comes to my mind, which undermined the democracy of India, namely, the dismissal of the first non-Congress, Communist Government (1957-59) under the Chief Ministership of C. M. S. Namboodripad. Under the Prime Ministership Indira Gandhi, the Indian State took a turn to the worst for the first time. She imposed emergency by suspending the constitution and put majority leaders of the opposition in jail.
The subsequent governments legislated laws, which compromised the democracy, liberty and freedom of speech of the citizens. Indira Gandhi’s “Maintenance of Internal Security Act” was perhaps the oldest law to put freedom of speech, democracy and liberty of the citizens on hold. The subsequent government passed several laws like Terrorist and Disruptive Activities (Prevention) Act (TADA), Prevention of Terrorism Act (POTA), some of which were repealed. We have inherited “The Law of Sedition” of the British colonial rulers. These laws were necessitated by the rise of terrorism in the country. The “Unlawful Activities Prevention Act” (UAPA) was aimed at prevention of unlawful activities directed against the integrity and sovereignty of India. This law came in force in 30th Dec. 1967. In 2019 “UAPA” was amended to expand the scope of the law to include individuals to be booked under this law. At the face of it, these laws are necessary, given the number of terrorist attacks that have taken place in India; majority of which are from across the border and their agents within India. But when these laws are misused by the state, the consequences to those innocent is a great issue.
As years pass by, we expect Indian democracy and the state to mature, creating more space for the citizens to enjoy freedom of speech and right to express dissent and Civil liberties. But the history of Indian state speaks a different story. As years pass by the Indian state has become more and more repressive. The states having these weapons (above laws) at their disposal have breached the boundary of truth to interpret these laws to terrorize the citizens who enjoy the freedom of speech and right to dissent and who raise uncomfortable questions to the government.
The Many Arrests, and No Trial
Mr. Uday Kumar from Tirunelveli was leading a struggle to oppose the Kudankulam Nuclear power plant. This project was environmentally hazardous and would endanger the lives and the livelihood of the people. Dr. Manmohan Singh Government booked him under the law of sedition. What is significant is, after 2014 the government had been using the “UAPA” and the “Law of Sedition” indiscriminately against anyone who criticizes the government or opposes the laws which go against the freedom, livelihood and lives of the people. This law is used against the people who agitate against Citizens’ Amendment Act or for repealing of the Farmers law.
There are hundreds languishing in jail under UAPA or Under the law of sedition. According to one report in the state of Jharkhand around 6000 youths are still languishing in different jails. Since 2015, 7840 people were arrested. Only in 26% cases the investigations were completed and 155 (2%) people were convicted.
There are no charge sheets filed in many of these cases; no trials have started and the law allows the security forces to keep these people in jail for years. There was an auto rickshaw driver, Habib Mohammed, who spent four years and three months in jail. He was arrested in 2017 in connection with 2005 terrorist attack in Indian Institute of Science. He was discharged on June 14, 2021 due to lack of credible evidence of his involvement. The judge “failed to understand why he was arraigned as an accused in the case.” A renowned journalist Vinod Dua, who was awarded “Padma Sri” for journalism and many more awards was charged under the law of sedition and later declared innocent. Natasha Narwal, Devangana Kalita, students of Jawaharlal Nehru University; and Asif Tanha, student of Jamia Millia Islamia university, were booked under UAPA. Their crime was that they participated in the protest against Citizenship Amendment Act. After spending 13 months in jail, they were released on bail. The court did not find any evidence of they being inciting violence. The court declared that expressing descent against the government does not amount to unlawful activity.
There have also been cases where some have lived in jail as long as 40 years and after 40 years, they are freed because the courts did not find any evidence against them. There is no question asked about the long years of their lives being wasted in jail and after they come out the world appears to them as a dark tunnel. We have a notorious case of Elgar Parishad, Bhima Koregaon case where several intellectuals, human right activists have been arrested and are spending years in the Jail.
Many more were booked under various provisions: namely, Sudha Bhardwaj, born in Massachusetts, United states was graduated from Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur, a lawyer activist and trade unionist working for three decades in Chhattisgarh. She is an active member of Chhattisgarh Mukti Morcha; Anand Teltumbde, an Indian scholar, writer, civil right activist, a professor of Goa Institute of Management, and has been an advocate of the rights of Dalits; Gautam Navlakha, a human rights activist and journalist, a member of people’s union for democratic rights, been also an editorial consultant of the Economic and Political Weekly; Hanny Babu, a professor of Delhi University; his wife, Jenny Rowena, also a professor. Fr Stan Swamy SJ (84), an eminent Jesuit Priest who was a director of the premier Indian Social Institute, Bangalore, and has been working in Jharkhand for the rights of the Adivasies; for their self-rule (PESA) Panchayats (Extension to Scheduled Area) Act 1996 Ensuring Self-Governance through traditional Gram Sabhas for people living in the Scheduled Areas of India; and Varavara Rao (80), poet, writer and activist. Apart from these Vernon Gonsalves, Arun Ferreira and Rona Wilson also are people who are arrested and charged as supporting terrorist’s activities.
There are many more citizens who are in jail with charges under UAPA or the Law of Sedition. They have been languishing in jail without charge sheet or trial. There are some evidences that have come out which indicate that the laptops of several of the accused were compromised. The investigation agencies have used malware to take control of their computers and inserted in their computer incriminating documents. The computer of human right activist, Rohan Wilson, who is in jail in connection with Bhima Koregaon case, was compromised. Using Malware several incriminating documents were inserted in his computer.
Some Were not Arrested, but Killed
To add to the above list, there are cases like Gauri Lankesh, a journalist who was assassinated on 5th September 2017; On 16th February 2015 Govind Pansare, a leftwing politician was assassinated along with his wife by gun wielding assailants in Kolhapur. M.M. Kalburgi, an Indian scholar of Vachana Sahitya in Kannada language and also served as a Vice Chancellor of Kannada university, Hampi, was assassinated on 30 August 2015 in Dharwad. Narendra Dabholkar, medical doctor and activist, was assassinated on 20th August 2013. These people were known for their anti-Hindutva views. These assassinations were meant to create fear among all radical thinkers and make them shut up.
In the past under the Congress and other governments, states used repressive measures against the people who were defending the right of the people. These laws were misused to protect the growth of Capital, big business and corporations.
There is a quantitative shift from the number of cases filed prior to 2012 and after 2015. Apart from the sharp rise in the cases, most of these cases have been filed to intimidate citizens who oppose the government and speak against the saffron agenda of the government. Justice Deepak Gupta has pointed out that the Law of Sedition and UAPA has been most frequently misused. The government of the day also resorts to induct rightwing people to the ranks of NIA, and other investigating agencies. The people from RSS, right wing thinking and the BJP will vehemently defend the action taken against the people using UAPA and the Law of Sedition.
While Pragya Thakur, accused terrorist in Malegaon case is not only released but has become Member of the Parliament. She openly declares Nathuram Godse who killed Mahatma Gandhi to be a hero. She claims drinking cow urine protects people from Corona Virus. These kinds of utterances are not seen as antinational.
To sum up, the nature of the Indian state has reached a point where Indian people are not necessary to run their government. It is governance by the corporates and saffron ideology for the corporates and the Hindutva agenda.
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