-Vidya Bhushan Rawat
(Samaj Weekly)- The horrific and horrible video of a man, who was later identified as Pravesh Shukla, member of BJP’s youth wing in Madhya Pradesh, urinating on the face of an innocent and helpless Adivasi boy is simply outrageous and an act of terror. I am not sure whether it will ever become the point of Prime Time Debate but this question need to be asked as why have the BJP ruled state reduced to such a nasty condition where a local leader who happens to be associated with ruling party not only abuse his political position but also use his caste privilege to humiliate and torture an Adivasi boy.
Narendra Modi and BJP will have to ponder sooner than later as to why India’s Savarna Samaj is discovering new forms of brutalities under their regime. Though Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shiv Raj Singh Chauhan has rightly condemned the incident and called for the biggest punishment against the perpetrator of the crime, the fact is the upper caste loyalty to BJP is actually emerging from the hatred they had for years against India’s Dalits and marginalised. This hatred and contempt is reflected in acts of violence and new forms of it including vide graphing the heinous crimes and popularising that on social media.
That an act of crime , which shames humanity, is being propagated as an ‘act of valor’ is the contribution of Sangh Parivar in the Post 2014 India where every act of terror and caste discrimination is being celebrated. The Prime Minister and his various ministers find no time and space to discuss mob lynching incidents. There is not a single regret on any of the incidents happening. Contrary to this, BJP and their 24×7 hours on prime time, have been using their spaces to divert the attention of the people and cast aspersions on those who question the silence of the government.
Such brutalities as happened in Madhya Pradesh would not have happened if Narendra Modi and his team had acted swiftly and condemned the incident. The hostile media will ‘discover’ a new issue to deflate the outrage. India’s discovery over these years have been to find a Muslim villain so that they can debate the issues. If there is no issue in India then they bring France into our discussion without ever pondering over the fact that the French issue is not really Islam but racial discrimination.
We hope Madhya Pradesh Police and Judiciary will take up this matter as a serious crime and sentence this thug into the maximum penalty. We know it well that after the incident is forgotten, these criminals will again assert. The Dalit Adivasis have often felt the brahmanical violence on them and it is time, we in India, come out openly against such criminal acts. The only way for all of us to survive and unite is to ensure that Constitutional morality becomes the hallmark of our socio-cultural lives. Constitutional Morality as described by Baba Saheb Ambedkar becomes part and parcel of our cultural value system only then we will be able to call ourselves as a civilised nation. To ensure that these thugs and criminals get maximum punishment so that these acts are not repeated.
Anyway, let us see how the government acts but this has proved how the brahmanical corrupt system in Madhya Pradesh continues to exploit Dalits and tribals. It is not unknown how Dalit bridegrooms are not allowed to ride on the horse on their marriage. This is Madhya Pradesh’s Hindutva model and should be defeated. The Hindutva politics need Dalit and Adivasis but not their emancipation and participation in power structure.
We also hope that the Adivasi boy would be counselled and his family should be properly compensated. The case against Pravesh Shukla must be filed not only under SC-ST Act but also under the Posco Act and immediate arrest should be made without any delay. Let us hope the boy get justice and not intimidation and threat to withdraw the complaint.
Vidya Bhushan Rawat
July 5th, 2023
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