There is a video I saw on BBC Channel covering one of the firing that happened between India & Pakistan Army across Indo-Pakistan boarder. One part which was massively covered by the Indian Media showed how two young soldiers lost their lives in this cross fire. The other part of the video which was not showed in India involved what happened in Pakistan. In the counter firing two infants were shot which lead to their immediate death. The mother of the two boys went insane due to the trauma. There was line by faiz
“Tuje kitno ka lahu chaiye aaye arze vatan,
Kitni mauto k baad kaleja tera thanda hoga”
There are soldiers living in hostile conditions to protect a glacier.These days there are growing acquisition which are being levied as people being anti-national. Tokens, symbols and certain dates are what people confusing as being patriotic. These so called nationalistic people than start distributing certificates of who is nationalistic and to which degree. The open who agree to them are Nationalistic, others not much so.
They don’t care about nationalism when they beat people from the north east. They don’t care about nationalism when they give bribes. They don’t care about nationalism when they litter around the city. They have this narrow definition of Nationalism which is inspired by the age of French Romanticism.
If you are so nationalistic do you know that average household income in a rural houselhold is Rs 5000, do you know that 90% of students dropout of the education system when they haven’t crossed class 10th. Do you know the stringent caste system which much of the India is still under. The malnutrition rate in India is highest, even greater than some countries of Sub-Saharan Africa. They will never donate to an NGO, either their time or their money. But they will question everyone on why they are not singing the National Anthem.
Who do you think Kassab was? Who do you think Afzal Guru was? These were both very nationalistic people who were ready to give their lives for their country’s cause. You pick up any person from Taliban? He will proudly say “That he is doing it for the county, for the greater good”. Every Nationalism is fraud in this sense. Ask the people of Pakistan or Bangladesh or Nepal now, the Nationalist there hate India and it guts. I am not saying that they are right. But like us do you the love for the county they tend ignore the flaws of their country instead on working on them
“A Nation is weakest form of Civilization”. And the kind of Nationalism which is being encouraged in India which encourages symbolism is lethal. It is self time bomb. The critics to any county is its most valuable assets which should be preserved and not deemed as anti-nationals. Not those who keep on saluting a symbol while muttering “My country is the greatest” .The constitution gives us the right to ask for change and there is much to change. Quoting Faiz again
“Chale chalo ke woh manzil abhi nahi aaye “
