Editor,
The labourers trapped in the coal mines are not from the local Khasi or Jaintia community hence there is a studied silence on the issue. Most of the so-called NGOs remain silent when it comes to illegal coal mining. Have we heard them condemning the assault on Messrs Agnes and Amita? Why this silence? Is it not because the coal money funds most NGOs? Then why do there same NGOs pretend to take up some issues and to ignore others and why do the people have so much faith on them? Their dictum of these so-called NGOs is – if the trade is carried out by locals there can be nothing illegal about it. In short, in their books a local can break all the rules and even make their own rules.
And what about the Government of the day? What is their stand? Do they support coal mining even if it is carried out vide the rat hole method so long as some amount accrues to their party kitty. Obviously all political parties will need money for the district council elections in 2019. And what is the source but coal or forced donation from the business lobby! And since business too is not doing too well there will not be enough money to throw around for votes. We really have to watch how the forthcoming elections will pan out. And don’t forget there is also the Lok Sabha elections next year. Although the Lok Sabha elections are not as expensive as the Assembly elections money is still the legal tender. The Congress candidate Vincent Pala from Shillong Parliamentary Constituency has his own resources but what about the NPP candidate from Tura? Coal money is perhaps the only source of funding that election. Also what about the BJP and the UDP candidate from Shillong? It will be a fight worth watching what with very little money infused into the electoral system..
And as far as our humanitarian values go, forget it..We maybe be Christians but out we still judge people in tragedies by their communities and religions. What a hue and cry would have been raised if those trapped in the mines were from the “Jaidbynriew.” Mea culpa..
Yours etc.,
R Kharmalki,
Via email
Why the Congress returned
Editor,
This refers to the article, “Achhe din backfires” by Shivaji Sarkar (ST, December 14, 2018). In the recent assembly elections, the BJP got 1 out of 40 seats in Mizoram, 1 out of 119 seats in Telangana, 15 out of 90 seats in Chhattisgarh, 73 out of 199 seats in Rajasthan and 109 out of 230 seats in Madhya Pradesh. Barring Madhya Pradesh, the BJP could not come anywhere near the halfway mark in the five state assemblies.
It would be interesting to find out what factors have changed the people’s mood. We know that the British game of Hindu – Muslim divisive politics had culminated in bloodshed and a partition. We had learnt from our past bitter experience what was the cost of allowing divide and rule sort of politicking to vitiate our mindsets. As a result, Indian voters cannot be swayed by Ali versus Bajrangbali or samsan versus kabarsthan kind of narratives for long.
Moreover, the 2006 Sachar Committee report placed Indian Muslims below SCs and STs in terms of their backwardness as well as their under – representation in the administration. The fact of the matter is that many Indian Muslims are poor and backward. So, the poor and backward among Muslims and the poor and socially challenged Dalits among Hindus cannot be divided on religious line as they all are victims of inequality and lack of inclusive growth.
We must not forget that the BJP got a huge majority in the 2014 Parliamentary election with the help of secular and inclusive slogans like toilet over temple and sabka sath, sabka vikas. But the people of our country got disillusioned by watching the mindless game of name changing, cow prioritising and spending a bomb for statue building while ignoring its election pledge of solving unemployment, agrarian and corruption issues.
On corruption, people cannot like the bottom – tight – top – loose kind of approach. While policies like demonetisation took the water away for small fries, big crocodiles happily survived on the land without water with the help of plastic money. On the other hand, soft dealing with macro bank loan defaulters and the hard approach on farm loans does not go down well with the farmers. Finally, Congress President Rahul Gandhi’s constant questioning of why the ruling party has been fighting shy of setting up of a Joint Parliamentary Committee on the Rafael deal seems to have given him an electoral dividend.
Yours etc.,
Sujit De,
Kolkata