Tuesday, August 15, 2006
We have failed you Shekhar
‘Hey idiot, get up, how can you keep on sleeping.’
Tarun looked around. Isn’t it the voice of his friend Shekhar? He could not believe it. It’s really great to hear the voice of his closest friend. It is a long long time since he last heard the voice of his friend. How long it is, he tried to recollect.
“I thing it should be 1942, isn’t it?”
He again looked around and tried to locate his friend. Oh there he is, mischievously smiling at him. Same old mischievous look. He is looking so young! Nothing has changed of him. Same familiar stature, now hunching over him as if looking down. Tarun tried to get up, but old age has slowed him down. The arthritis also made it painful to get up from his slumber.
Tarun tried to recollected the good old days. Madral village, (very near to Naihati, the birth place of Rishi Bankimchandra, the poet who wrote “Bande Matarm’) their native place, was some 35 kilometers from Calcutta. They were just out of their teens, at Calcutta to study. But what study? The air was full with the freedom struggle. The country was in turmoil. All of them were behind Mahatma Gandhi on his call ‘Quit India’. ‘Do or Die, we want freedom.’ He and Shekhar were the leaders of the students of their college. Shekhar was always with him. Those were the days. The goose pimples started to grow on his skin. The word ‘Bande Mataram’- how it used to inspire them! How the call of Mahatma made them forget their family, relatives, personal responsibilities. The call of Bharatmata was greater than any call weather from his or her own parents or sweetheart, or anyone else.
But it was a long time since Shekhar departed. He was even not with him on the midnight of 15th August 1947. It was a long long time indeed.
“Hey Shekhar, what the hell. You remembered me after such a long time? It is really unbecoming of yours. Anyway how are you? Where are you?...” so many questions started coming out from the old throat of Tarun. It gave him a long burst of coughing.
‘Asthma again” murmured Tarun to himself.
And looked up again to his long lost friend, “Why did not you come to me earlier?”
“Where to come Tarun?” the face of his friend saddened.
“What do you mean?”
“Look around you Tarun. What a mess you have around here.”
“Mess? What mess?”
“I am talking about the country, Tarun. I am talking about Bharatmata”.
“Why, what is wrong? We are progressing. India is shinning. Aam Admi is taken care of. What are you talking about?”
The face of his friend darkened.
“Is this the country we were looking for, we fought for Tarun? Do you remember the ‘Tryst with Destiny?’ It’s a long time back, 59 years. You must have forgotten the words Tarun.. Shall I repeat them, if not fully, a few paragraphs?
‘Long years ago we made a tryst with destiny, and now the time comes when we shall redeem our pledge, not wholly or in full measure, but very substantially. At the stroke of the midnight hour, when the world sleeps, India will awake to life and freedom. ‘A moment comes, which comes but rarely in history, when we step out from the old to the new, when an age ends, and when the soul of a nation, long suppressed, finds utterance. It is fitting that at this solemn moment we take the pledge of dedication to the service of India and her people and to the still larger cause of humanity.
‘Through good and ill fortune alike she has never lost sight of that quest or forgotten the ideals which gave her strength. We end today a period of ill fortune and India discovers herself again.
‘We may fulfill the pledges we have so often taken and the one we shall take today. The service of India means the service of the millions who suffer. It means the ending of poverty and ignorance and disease and inequality of opportunity. The ambition of the greatest man of our generation has been to wipe every tear from every eye.
‘This is no time for petty and destructive criticism, no time for ill will or blaming others. We have to build the noble mansion of free India where all her children may dwell.
‘On this day our first thoughts go to the architect of this freedom, the Father of our Nation [Gandhi], who, embodying the old spirit of India, held aloft the torch of freedom and lighted up the darkness that surrounded us. We have often been unworthy followers of his and have strayed from his message, but not only we but succeeding generations will remember this message and bear the imprint in their hearts of this great son of India, magnificent in his faith and strength and courage and humility. We shall never allow that torch of freedom to be blown out, however high the wind or stormy the tempest.
‘Our next thoughts must be of the unknown volunteers and soldiers of freedom who, without praise or reward, have served India even unto death.
‘The future beckons to us. Whither do we go and what shall be our endeavour? To bring freedom and opportunity to the common man, to the peasants and workers of India; to fight and end poverty and ignorance and disease; to build up a prosperous, democratic and progressive nation, and to create social, economic and political institutions which will ensure justice and fullness of life to every man and woman.
‘All of us, to whatever religion we may belong, are equally the children of India with equal rights, privileges and obligations. We cannot encourage communalism or narrow-mindedness, for no nation can be great whose
“Do you remember those word, Tarun?”
Tarun started perspiring. Is the blood pressure rising again? He started feeling uneasy. What is this? Today on the eve of 59th Independence Day of Free India, his old friend has come back. He should be dancing with joy. Instead of that he is feeling ill. What is the matter? Is it the presence of Shekhar or the hard words of Shekhar, which is making him ill?
Shekhar was looking at him; his piercing eyes hard, as if accusing Tarun.
“Well we are a free country today.” Replied Tarun.
“Free to do what? Free to loot the poor? Free to kill your fellow countrymen in the name of religion? Free to indulge in corrupt practices? Free to enrich the political class, bureaucracy with ill-gotten money? Free to forget the ideologies the nation stood for? Free to ape anything foreign? ” – Came the retort.
“Hey Shekhar, look around, so much has changed. India is progressing. You know today we are a de facto nuclear state.”
“Tarun, please remember the promises we made. Did we sacrifice our lives in the freedom struggle to become nuclear state? Well Shekhar, No, we did not.
“But never mind, can you tell me by becoming nuclear state how close we are to our goal of:
to wipe every tear from every eye,
We have to build the noble mansion of free India where all her children may dwell,
To bring freedom and opportunity to the common man, to the peasants and workers of India; to fight and end poverty and ignorance and disease; to build up a prosperous, democratic and progressive nation, and to create social, economic and political institutions which will ensure justice and fullness of life to every man and woman.
All of us, to whatever religion we may belong, are equally the children of India with equal rights, privileges and obligations. We cannot encourage communalism or narrow-mindedness,”
“Well we have progressed in space research. Our scientists have proved that India can progress in scientific field” – Tarun tried to assert himself.
“Yes, our scientists are next to none. But where is their expertise required?
“How many of children in India die from malnutrition, how many women fall to miscarriage due to non availability of primary healthcare?
“How many of the villagers have access to safe drinking water?”
“You know our education system has improved. We have world class institutes like IIMs, IITs.” The proud words came out of Shekhar.
“How sad Tarun. You are not able to build enough schools for providing basic education to the citizen. Are you aware how many children are deprived of basic education?
“How many of the citizens are getting primary healthcare? Where is the basic sanitation? Today even beggars hesitate twice before entering a govt. hospital for treatment, if and where available?” – The eyes of Shekhar started to glow in anger.
“What do you expect? Do you know how much difficulties we have to overcome? The country is spending so much of its resources in security purposes only. Look at the terrorists and Naxalites playing havoc and hindering the development”
“Who made them Terrorists? Who made them Naxalites? Don’t you ever ponder why after 59 years of independence also why a peasant, a tribal has to take up gun for getting his justice? It is you who made them naxalite. It is more than half a century that the first uprising of naxalbari happened. The menace of Naxalism has increased its tentacles in newer parts of the country because of the Govt. apathy, shortsightedness. You have made your own citizen your enemy.
“Who made them terrorists? It is you and your impotent govt. why don’t you understand that the seed of terrorism is sowed by you by your inaction? Your citizens become terrorists once they loose faith on the land of the law. You have mutely witnessed the massacre of innocent citizens in the name of religion. Your political leaders fanned the flame of communism. You have alienated the vast majority by your minority appeasement policies. It is you, who have created the division in the citizens. Now you blame outside agencies. You have created a fertile ground for them to sow the seed of divide.
“You are not satisfied with dividing the nation on religious line. You have created Frankenstein by fanning the caste division. You have created division among brothers in the name of religion, caste and even language. Today you find the ugly head of regionalism raising its heads from all corner of the country. Today everybody is bothered about diving the country. More and more regional selfishness are blurring your vision. All of you are busy about thinking about your religion, caste, language, and region. No one has the time for the nation.
“We fought against external enemy. Now you are fighting against internal enemy created by you.
“You know Tarun, you cannot expect to progress. You know what is drawing you back? Look at yourselves. For one forward step you are taking so many forces are acting against you to pull you back, and unfortunately you are not even realizing that all these forces are created by you only. You have created enemy within. You have forgotten the heritage of this country. You have forgotten the teachings of Bhagwan Shree Rama, Shree Kirshna, Lord Buddha, Mahatma Gandhi. You the people of India are solely responsible for creating all the negative forces, which is pulling you back. And as long us you feign ignorance, you cannot even expect any progress.
“Where has the pride gone, Tarun? Look at the young generation. How many of them are proud to be Indian? If you look at their eyes, you will find only greed and apathy. You even could not imbibe nationalism in them.
“Look at your hands Tarun, can you tell what do you see?”
Tarun looked down at his hand. Horrified, he saw those are red and wet in blood. He remembered his hands are soaked with bloods of Shekhar. His vision got cleared. It was at Maidan, they went on a procession. Police started firing. His friend shekhar fell hit by a bullet. He was holding his dearest friend on his lap, blood oozing out from his friends chest. Blood, Blood, so much blood. His friend breathed his least on his lap. The eyes of his friend was glistering with pride and glory as if the eyes of an angel.
He looked up. Where have those glistering and shining eyes gone? Those are now a pair of sad, dejected eyes, looking at him. What are they saying; accusing him for the failure of a nation, for letting his friend down on his sacrifice?
“Get up Tarun,”
“Get Up, Get up”
Someone is shaking him violently. Opening his eyes he found his grand daughter Nisha is shaking him. (He wondered the name of his grand daughter Nisha, means night; is it a premonition which made him name her Nisha, denoting she is born at the Dark Age?)
“Get up grandpa. Don’t you remember, today is Independence Day. They are going to honor you as a freedom fighter. Get up and get ready fast.”
Tarun looked around with his tired eyes and started to cry, howling to the bewilderment of the young lady.
“We have failed you Shekhar, we have failed you. As a nation we have failed you. GOD will never forgive us for wasting the sacrifices of great souls like yours.” – Tarun continued to cry.
Tarun looked around. Isn’t it the voice of his friend Shekhar? He could not believe it. It’s really great to hear the voice of his closest friend. It is a long long time since he last heard the voice of his friend. How long it is, he tried to recollect.
“I thing it should be 1942, isn’t it?”
He again looked around and tried to locate his friend. Oh there he is, mischievously smiling at him. Same old mischievous look. He is looking so young! Nothing has changed of him. Same familiar stature, now hunching over him as if looking down. Tarun tried to get up, but old age has slowed him down. The arthritis also made it painful to get up from his slumber.
Tarun tried to recollected the good old days. Madral village, (very near to Naihati, the birth place of Rishi Bankimchandra, the poet who wrote “Bande Matarm’) their native place, was some 35 kilometers from Calcutta. They were just out of their teens, at Calcutta to study. But what study? The air was full with the freedom struggle. The country was in turmoil. All of them were behind Mahatma Gandhi on his call ‘Quit India’. ‘Do or Die, we want freedom.’ He and Shekhar were the leaders of the students of their college. Shekhar was always with him. Those were the days. The goose pimples started to grow on his skin. The word ‘Bande Mataram’- how it used to inspire them! How the call of Mahatma made them forget their family, relatives, personal responsibilities. The call of Bharatmata was greater than any call weather from his or her own parents or sweetheart, or anyone else.
But it was a long time since Shekhar departed. He was even not with him on the midnight of 15th August 1947. It was a long long time indeed.
“Hey Shekhar, what the hell. You remembered me after such a long time? It is really unbecoming of yours. Anyway how are you? Where are you?...” so many questions started coming out from the old throat of Tarun. It gave him a long burst of coughing.
‘Asthma again” murmured Tarun to himself.
And looked up again to his long lost friend, “Why did not you come to me earlier?”
“Where to come Tarun?” the face of his friend saddened.
“What do you mean?”
“Look around you Tarun. What a mess you have around here.”
“Mess? What mess?”
“I am talking about the country, Tarun. I am talking about Bharatmata”.
“Why, what is wrong? We are progressing. India is shinning. Aam Admi is taken care of. What are you talking about?”
The face of his friend darkened.
“Is this the country we were looking for, we fought for Tarun? Do you remember the ‘Tryst with Destiny?’ It’s a long time back, 59 years. You must have forgotten the words Tarun.. Shall I repeat them, if not fully, a few paragraphs?
‘Long years ago we made a tryst with destiny, and now the time comes when we shall redeem our pledge, not wholly or in full measure, but very substantially. At the stroke of the midnight hour, when the world sleeps, India will awake to life and freedom. ‘A moment comes, which comes but rarely in history, when we step out from the old to the new, when an age ends, and when the soul of a nation, long suppressed, finds utterance. It is fitting that at this solemn moment we take the pledge of dedication to the service of India and her people and to the still larger cause of humanity.
‘Through good and ill fortune alike she has never lost sight of that quest or forgotten the ideals which gave her strength. We end today a period of ill fortune and India discovers herself again.
‘We may fulfill the pledges we have so often taken and the one we shall take today. The service of India means the service of the millions who suffer. It means the ending of poverty and ignorance and disease and inequality of opportunity. The ambition of the greatest man of our generation has been to wipe every tear from every eye.
‘This is no time for petty and destructive criticism, no time for ill will or blaming others. We have to build the noble mansion of free India where all her children may dwell.
‘On this day our first thoughts go to the architect of this freedom, the Father of our Nation [Gandhi], who, embodying the old spirit of India, held aloft the torch of freedom and lighted up the darkness that surrounded us. We have often been unworthy followers of his and have strayed from his message, but not only we but succeeding generations will remember this message and bear the imprint in their hearts of this great son of India, magnificent in his faith and strength and courage and humility. We shall never allow that torch of freedom to be blown out, however high the wind or stormy the tempest.
‘Our next thoughts must be of the unknown volunteers and soldiers of freedom who, without praise or reward, have served India even unto death.
‘The future beckons to us. Whither do we go and what shall be our endeavour? To bring freedom and opportunity to the common man, to the peasants and workers of India; to fight and end poverty and ignorance and disease; to build up a prosperous, democratic and progressive nation, and to create social, economic and political institutions which will ensure justice and fullness of life to every man and woman.
‘All of us, to whatever religion we may belong, are equally the children of India with equal rights, privileges and obligations. We cannot encourage communalism or narrow-mindedness, for no nation can be great whose
“Do you remember those word, Tarun?”
Tarun started perspiring. Is the blood pressure rising again? He started feeling uneasy. What is this? Today on the eve of 59th Independence Day of Free India, his old friend has come back. He should be dancing with joy. Instead of that he is feeling ill. What is the matter? Is it the presence of Shekhar or the hard words of Shekhar, which is making him ill?
Shekhar was looking at him; his piercing eyes hard, as if accusing Tarun.
“Well we are a free country today.” Replied Tarun.
“Free to do what? Free to loot the poor? Free to kill your fellow countrymen in the name of religion? Free to indulge in corrupt practices? Free to enrich the political class, bureaucracy with ill-gotten money? Free to forget the ideologies the nation stood for? Free to ape anything foreign? ” – Came the retort.
“Hey Shekhar, look around, so much has changed. India is progressing. You know today we are a de facto nuclear state.”
“Tarun, please remember the promises we made. Did we sacrifice our lives in the freedom struggle to become nuclear state? Well Shekhar, No, we did not.
“But never mind, can you tell me by becoming nuclear state how close we are to our goal of:
to wipe every tear from every eye,
We have to build the noble mansion of free India where all her children may dwell,
To bring freedom and opportunity to the common man, to the peasants and workers of India; to fight and end poverty and ignorance and disease; to build up a prosperous, democratic and progressive nation, and to create social, economic and political institutions which will ensure justice and fullness of life to every man and woman.
All of us, to whatever religion we may belong, are equally the children of India with equal rights, privileges and obligations. We cannot encourage communalism or narrow-mindedness,”
“Well we have progressed in space research. Our scientists have proved that India can progress in scientific field” – Tarun tried to assert himself.
“Yes, our scientists are next to none. But where is their expertise required?
“How many of children in India die from malnutrition, how many women fall to miscarriage due to non availability of primary healthcare?
“How many of the villagers have access to safe drinking water?”
“You know our education system has improved. We have world class institutes like IIMs, IITs.” The proud words came out of Shekhar.
“How sad Tarun. You are not able to build enough schools for providing basic education to the citizen. Are you aware how many children are deprived of basic education?
“How many of the citizens are getting primary healthcare? Where is the basic sanitation? Today even beggars hesitate twice before entering a govt. hospital for treatment, if and where available?” – The eyes of Shekhar started to glow in anger.
“What do you expect? Do you know how much difficulties we have to overcome? The country is spending so much of its resources in security purposes only. Look at the terrorists and Naxalites playing havoc and hindering the development”
“Who made them Terrorists? Who made them Naxalites? Don’t you ever ponder why after 59 years of independence also why a peasant, a tribal has to take up gun for getting his justice? It is you who made them naxalite. It is more than half a century that the first uprising of naxalbari happened. The menace of Naxalism has increased its tentacles in newer parts of the country because of the Govt. apathy, shortsightedness. You have made your own citizen your enemy.
“Who made them terrorists? It is you and your impotent govt. why don’t you understand that the seed of terrorism is sowed by you by your inaction? Your citizens become terrorists once they loose faith on the land of the law. You have mutely witnessed the massacre of innocent citizens in the name of religion. Your political leaders fanned the flame of communism. You have alienated the vast majority by your minority appeasement policies. It is you, who have created the division in the citizens. Now you blame outside agencies. You have created a fertile ground for them to sow the seed of divide.
“You are not satisfied with dividing the nation on religious line. You have created Frankenstein by fanning the caste division. You have created division among brothers in the name of religion, caste and even language. Today you find the ugly head of regionalism raising its heads from all corner of the country. Today everybody is bothered about diving the country. More and more regional selfishness are blurring your vision. All of you are busy about thinking about your religion, caste, language, and region. No one has the time for the nation.
“We fought against external enemy. Now you are fighting against internal enemy created by you.
“You know Tarun, you cannot expect to progress. You know what is drawing you back? Look at yourselves. For one forward step you are taking so many forces are acting against you to pull you back, and unfortunately you are not even realizing that all these forces are created by you only. You have created enemy within. You have forgotten the heritage of this country. You have forgotten the teachings of Bhagwan Shree Rama, Shree Kirshna, Lord Buddha, Mahatma Gandhi. You the people of India are solely responsible for creating all the negative forces, which is pulling you back. And as long us you feign ignorance, you cannot even expect any progress.
“Where has the pride gone, Tarun? Look at the young generation. How many of them are proud to be Indian? If you look at their eyes, you will find only greed and apathy. You even could not imbibe nationalism in them.
“Look at your hands Tarun, can you tell what do you see?”
Tarun looked down at his hand. Horrified, he saw those are red and wet in blood. He remembered his hands are soaked with bloods of Shekhar. His vision got cleared. It was at Maidan, they went on a procession. Police started firing. His friend shekhar fell hit by a bullet. He was holding his dearest friend on his lap, blood oozing out from his friends chest. Blood, Blood, so much blood. His friend breathed his least on his lap. The eyes of his friend was glistering with pride and glory as if the eyes of an angel.
He looked up. Where have those glistering and shining eyes gone? Those are now a pair of sad, dejected eyes, looking at him. What are they saying; accusing him for the failure of a nation, for letting his friend down on his sacrifice?
“Get up Tarun,”
“Get Up, Get up”
Someone is shaking him violently. Opening his eyes he found his grand daughter Nisha is shaking him. (He wondered the name of his grand daughter Nisha, means night; is it a premonition which made him name her Nisha, denoting she is born at the Dark Age?)
“Get up grandpa. Don’t you remember, today is Independence Day. They are going to honor you as a freedom fighter. Get up and get ready fast.”
Tarun looked around with his tired eyes and started to cry, howling to the bewilderment of the young lady.
“We have failed you Shekhar, we have failed you. As a nation we have failed you. GOD will never forgive us for wasting the sacrifices of great souls like yours.” – Tarun continued to cry.
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