Khairlanji, PoA & the Burning Queen

Once again, I’m ashamed. I’d only barely heard about Khairlanji, and due to my extremely inconsistent newspaper reading, only the bits that had to do with the political shenanigans. And in the eternally cynical urban ability to screen out and rationalize, I didn’t bother finding out what had happened.

Even when violence broke out in Bombay and the Deccan Queen was set on fire, all I could think was about the pettiness and opportunism of the Dalit politicians, which was also echoed in the major dailies! Aren’t there enough statues of all and sundry, religious or of leaders that are completely allowed to fall apart or get buried under bird droppings? Why talk of vandalism and disrespect, when the norm is to completely neglect the innumerable statues and monuments that litter our cities and countryside. When the historical heritage of the country is allowed to crumble into dust, get encroached upon, or vandalized for construction material, why this hullabaloo over another gaudy and meaningless statue?

I’d not been affected by the sporadic violence in the city; in fact I’d not even known about it until I went into office and some appointments got canceled – people living in areas where the violence was breaking out were staying in and not taking chances. Bombay has become a worried city over the last decade – the riots of the 90’s have scarred and scared the city. It was only the day after, when I saw the morning papers that I got to learn the extent of the troubles of the previous day. And even these had more to do with the ‘embarrassment to the government’ and how the chief minister was cutting short his trip to Singapore and coming back; the usual suspects, including the present home minister who is now the pet whipping boy for everyone including his alliance partner, made the usual noises – outrage, indignation, condemnation – the term Khairlanji came up, and how the police officials involved were facing suspension. In a state where over 1000 cotton farmers have committed suicide in the year so far, why should there be so much sound and fury over the killing of four Dalits, the media seemed to imply, and I too internalized.

And then all my internalizations and rationalizations and compartmentalizations fell apart and I feel a deep sense of shame. I came across the report prepared by YASHADA, and even a superficial reading left me wondering how something like this could happen in what is considered to be one of the most progressive states in the country. And if this could happen here, then what may be the ground reality in the BIMARU states? What had been done to the Dalit family in Khairlanji was nothing short of horrifying, and yet, what was even more appalling was the official response – the report shows how the entire response was aimed at suppressing the distorting the truth of what had happened. And this state of affairs carried on for months!

I’m surprised that retaliatory violence didn’t break out much earlier; this probably best reflects the state of mind of that large body of people called the Dalits. I’m saddened that they have the kind of leadership that they seem to be stuck with, where a crime so horrifying was papered over by their representatives; you don’t need to be a cynic to speculate on what or how much was the quid pro quo that the leaders worked out for themselves!

As citizens of the country’s commercial capital and its most cosmopolitan and progressive metro, we perhaps have a lot that we can take for granted. And indeed do, with a great deal of intolerance to boot – road rage, train compartment rage, we’re always alert to protect our space and privileges, the amenities we’re used to. In our favor, we’re probably the most secular group in the country – the Bombayite tag may be stained and tarnished, but still carries some respect. But this Bombay spirit is now confined only to the ordinary people, the common man, and this poor man is so consumed by the demands that living in Bombay makes on him that he has no time or energy to get concerned about what happens outside his neighborhood, or workplace, or station – in short, his usual daily routine. And the flipside is of course how jealously and violently this routine is guarded. And so the traffic disruptions on account of Ambedkar Jayanti and the time it added to my daily commute – nearly doubled the 1-hour it usually takes – had me fretting and fuming.

And yet. Perhaps it was the shock of the Khairlanji report that caused me to notice that so many of the people who were thronging the Shivaji Park area were middle-aged or elderly. They clearly looked like villagers, not city-dwellers, and I wondered about the troubles they must have faced in getting to the city, ticketless travel notwithstanding. In the context of Khailanji, I could get a glimpse of how this annual excursion to the city could be a high-point, where they could wander around without facing discrimination, enter into places that would be ‘forbidden’ to them in their regular daily lives – I’m proud that this city does not discriminate on religious grounds, at least not overtly. The discrimination of the city is almost entirely on economic grounds, and ours is the caste system of money! For the youngsters of the villages, the malls and the well-displayed women of the city could so easily power the fantasies for the time till the next visit.

So what is it that I’m trying to say here, what is this piece all about? I’m ashamed about my intolerance to anything that threatens to disrupt my routine, my entitlements and privileges. This is something that creeps and grows over time until it assumes monstrous proportions; I’d already noticed how a taxi swerving into my lane in traffic was a ‘personal insult’ and the anger that it produced. I need to work on taking things less ‘personally’, to build some consideration and tolerance for the disruptions that make up life.
I’m also ashamed that rather than direct my ire at the apathy, indifference, callousness, venality, subversion and corruption that are the hallmarks of any governmental body, I take the path of least resistance and use it to fuel my intolerance further – ‘bloody country slobs, how dare they come and trash up a place and disrupt life for us busy citizens!’ becomes the rallying cry and the focus of being. To the extent that there’s no attempt to examine why the civic machinery, which is pathetic even in handling its normal duties, becomes invisible at such times; mobile lavatories, quick and regular garbage collection, convenient access to water, so many aspects that could be well delivered if there was the will to do so. But I suspect what happens here is that this doesn’t benefit the city-fathers in any way, the beneficiaries would be the political parties, and even there, the tangible benefits would be to the out-of-town leaders, so why spend money – the local residents are now used to this annual devastation and many of them shift out of their homes anyway!

It’s a fine line and a tough one to walk – to develop consideration and yet to be demanding of the authorities. It’s not a contradiction though, despite the seeming paradox of expecting authorities to do what they’re supposed to do. Who knows, there’s a smell of possible change in the air, the Supreme Court of India has ruled that official clearance is not required for prosecuting public servants; this is bound to be contested furiously by the politicians, who will bring in a constitutional amendment if required. But Shibu Soren has been sentenced to life, so what if it’s taken 12-years, and the entire political establishment seems to be all aflutter at the implications. The RTI Act refuses to get buried under the mounds of bureaucracy, reservations for vote-banks seems to be facing turbulence that was clearly unanticipated. So many signs of positive differences, there’s much to be optimistic about despite the enormous chicanery of the ruling classes.

Read the Khairlanji report, form your own conclusions. Read this excellently written article in Outlook Online.

Condemn the violence by all means but not before you ask what escalated it to such a scale. Once the fire was lit, many joined in for their own grab — Dalit politicians, Naxal fringe groups, sections of the underworld that have a strong Dalit presence, opportunistic political parties…

Read the full article, to understand the full extent of the tragedy that took place in Kahirlanji - to a family that was doing all the right things to change their ‘destiny’.

And lets commit to keeping our minds open to life and all that it brings, even when it inconveniences. As always, I’d love to hear your views and opinions.