‘Glorifying Naxalism For Two Minutes of Fame Can Destroy One’s Entire Career’
Aryan Sharma, a research scholar of Lucknow University, says students must not glorify proponents of a violent ideology at the cost of their prospects. His views:
In a few recent cases, several university students were seen carrying out slogans in favour of slain Naxal leaders and vilifying leaders of current dispensation. While dissent and difference of opinion are permissible in a democratic setup, glorifying violence and extra-judicial justice system cannot be tolerated in a sovereign state. There is need for educative debates and discourse on various perspectives on national security, the legitimacy of Naxal ideology, and the boundaries of free speech and dissent in India.
It is also a pity that the lawyers of those arrested students argued that while slogans were anti-establishment, they cannot automatically be a ground for severe charges or prolonged police custody, asserting the right to free speech within a democracy. I wish to ask: Is raising anti national slogans and using pepper spray on police personnel (causing grievous injuries to their eyes) justified in a civilized society?
Besides the preliminary FIR on these ‘revolutionary’ students under sections 74, 79, 115(2), 132, 197, 221, 223, 223A, 132, 221, 121A and 126(2) of the BNS, Section 197 has been added that pertains to imputations and assertions prejudicial to national integration, which includes charges for disseminating false information that endangers India’s sovereignty, unity, or security. These enlightened students will sooner or later find bail, but the fresh charges of anti-national activities are bound to dent their future prospects in terms of professional lives as we all are aware of the pace at which our judicial system works!
I fail to see how these students have put at stake their future professional and personal lives for the sake to two-minutes-of-fame. What good did they achieve by hailing Madavi Hidma who had brutally killed dozens of Indian Jawans who were carrying out their duties in one of the harshest regions of the country? How can waving the posters of a dreaded and heinous killer at an environmental or any other protest be justified? This isn’t activism; it’s ideological hijacking.
A genuine protest for clean air got dragged into extremist symbolism by a bunch of people who clearly showed up with a different agenda that now finds less or little supporters in our democracy. If you want to fight for clean air or any issue related to the betterment of our society, remain stuck to your basics. Do not glorify a militant responsible for mass killings as this crossover makes zero sense unless you have other harmful agendas against the country.
Of late, any protest for a good cause is taken over by political propagandists and Naxalites. It is ridiculous that these idiots can’t even think of protesting without these people messing it up and hijacking the real agenda. Wake up and start thinking with your independent mind as to how and in which manner you can make a suitable contribution for your country and the society.
As told to Rajat Rai
