Maharashtra witnesses govt-sponsored terrorism, think-tank opts to remain tight-lipped

 

The current political scenario has left everyone perturbed in Maharashtra. There is complete anarchy in the state, thanks to the state-sponsored terrorism by the Shiv Sena workers. The Bharatiya Janata Party leaders are being publicly attacked. Mobs are vandalising and hurling stones at the vehicles and residences of BJP leaders, all in the presence of the state police.

The recent incident of stones being hurled by Shiv Sena activists at Kirit Somaiya’s vehicle in the police station premise despite Somaiya having Z security or stone pelting outside Rana’s residence despite the wife being MP and the husband, an MLA. Both the instances are absolutely serious. But when they were taking place, the state police opted to remain mute spectators.

Also, what is shocking is that even the journalist fraternity, the think-tank and the intelligentsia chose to remain tight-lipped. They neither showed the courage nor the audacity to hold the government accountable for all these incidents that has endangered the fundamental rights of the citizens. This is absolutely disturbing. Had such incidents happened during the Devendra Fadnavis-led government’s tenure, these journalists, think-tank and the intelligentsia would have grilled government.

After breaking ties with the Bharatiya Janata Party, the Shiv Sena joined hands with the Congress and the Nationalist Congress Party. As a result, now the Shiv Sena has also become one of the favourite parties of this fraternity, who does not wish to criticise or talk against the Congress or the NCP. And the recent instances have once again proved the hypocrisy, double standards about democracy and the insult of freedom of expression by these intellectuals.

There are similarities between the recent instances vis-à-vis those that took place during the coalition government from 1995 to 1999. It may be recalled that during the 1995 assembly elections, the think-tank and the intellectuals were confident that Congress will not face defeat in Maharashtra. But they were grossly disappointed when the BJP-Shiv Sena coalition government came to power in the state.

The moment the coalition government came to power, the intellectuals left no opportunity to target the BJP and the Shiv Sena. And during this time, they got an opportunity when a person named Ramesh Kini died under suspicious circumstances.

It may be recalled that the then leader of opposition in the legislative council Chhagan Bhujbal had attacked the Shiv Sena chief Balasaheb Thackeray and the coalition government for the alleged connection of the latter’s nephew Raj Thackeray and his associates in the death of Kini. Currently how Sanjay Raut and Nawab Malik are the chosen ones by the media, similarly Chhagan Bhujbal was the most favourite of most of the media houses, including the electronic media which was nascent during that time. His press conferences used to be crowded.

Bhujbal had levelled serious allegations and implicated Balasaheb’s nephew in this suspicious death of Ramesh Kini. This created immense anger among the Shiv Sainiks. Also, since the media, the newspapers in specific, began criticising the coalition government over this issue, the Shiv Sainiks wrath soared. The aggrieved Shiv Sainiks had then attacked the official residence of Bhujbal. Seeing the rudravatar (the scariest avatar) of the Shiv Sainiks, Bhujbal hid inside his bedroom. It was owing to his prudent police security guard that Bhujbal’s life was saved. After this incident, the media, the intelligentsia, and the think-tank intensified the attack on the BJP-Shiv Sena alliance government.

NCP chief Sharad Pawar and Chhagan Bhujbal are always seen acting as the flag-bearers of freedom of expression and boasting about democracy and the fundamental rights bestowed by our constitution. Now history has repeated itself – the Shiv Sainiks attacked the residence of the couple MP Navneet Rana and MLA Ravi Rana. But neither Pawar Saheb nor Bhujbal seems to be talking about democracy or the fundamental rights. Pawar, Bhujbal, the journalists, editors and the think-tank seems to have forgotten the language that they used 25 years ago against the Shiv Sainiks. And there is nothing surprising about it. Time has once again proved that the intelligentsia and journalist’s zeal for democracy and boasting about freedom of expression was completely fake. Now, that the Shiv Sena has broken ties with the BJP, it has also become the most favourite party for the media and the think-tank.

Also, during the tenure of the coalition government, senior journalist Nikhil Wagle had launched a serious attack on the Shiv Sena. Probably Wagle is now of the opinion that the attack on Kirit Somaiya and on Mohit Kamboj are not as serious as the ones reported during the coalition government’s period. And hence even he has opted to remain silent on the current happenings in the state.

Recently, even the Supreme Court termed the decision of disqualifying 12 BJP MLAs as unconstitutional and irrational. But still the journalists and the think-tank chose not to speak anything in this regard.

Maharashtra has been witnessing Aghadi government-sponsored terrorism since the last two years. Instances of the arrest of senior journalist Arnab Goswami or the raid conducted on the residence of actor Kangana Ranaut or the deliberate attempt to arrest union minister Narayan Rane and hence implicating him under various sections by levelling allegations against him or the attack on Rana family and charging them of sedition – all these instances are testimony of the MVA government’s dictatorial behaviour. This will even embarrass the erstwhile dictators like Adolf Hitler or Benito Mussolini.

Concepts of democracy, freedom of expression, fundamental rights given by the constitution are all getting strangled by the passing day in Maharashtra, but the intellectuals are not bothered and have opted to remain silent.

When a person like Sanjay Raut, holding the position of an MP, threatens to bury the Rana family 20 feet under the ground, a complaint should have been filed against him. But neither the intellectuals objected to its nor any complaint was filed. Seeing all this, people in Maharashtra are bound to be reminded of the famous verse in Marathi penned by a noted Marathi poet Suresh Bhat which says ‘Kase Punya Durdaivi An Paap Bhagyashali’ which means While the righteous is hapless, the nefarious is propitious. 

 

(Article Pre-Published in Times of India, 28 April 2022)

Keshav Upadhye, chief spokesperson