Diwali in 2016

“Save the environment, spare a thought for the mute sufferers”

“Ah!So your consciousness has awaken from from its seasonal hibernation, huh? What about Bakr-e-Eid?”

“But what’s the fault of these innocent animals?”

“Aren’t  you the one who had taken out a beef rally in July?”

 

Welcome to India 2016. Where the most benign of actions lead to controversies. So how could this band of political mafia let go of the biggest religious stage of the year. Tired of these endless ongoing tirades I decided to let my thoughts flow through my keyboard.

Diwali is one of the most important religions in the Hindu culture, celebrated to mark the victory of light over darkness. Observed with exuberance and grandeur from the topmost to the lowest latitude, it often transcends religious barriers.It being so because of inclusive nature of this grand occasion.The religious prayers or “puja” being a minor ritual at best, especially for the kids.Throughout my childhood it had been a day when I could literally play with fire. This sense of heroism existent throughout the country gave kids a chance to show off to their friends and their friends to outshine them.It didn’t matter what religion you belonged to because the highlights of the day were firecrackers and sweets. And what kid doesn’t love them.

But no, the day of brotherhood from my childhood serves as a divide between communities today. Thank you, our esteemed leaders. You have managed to divide people living together since centuries.Some People blame this sharp rise in religious tension on the right wing.Their counterparts reply that this is just a reaction to the minority appeasing politics of the left wing. To be frank, I believe both halves are equally guilty. The right unites the majority against the minority while the left aims to divide the majority into smaller and smaller minorities. This game of power has created a wide rift between the true rulers of democracy, the citizens. Human beings are often searching for an opportunity to associate themselves with some identity larger than themselves and these opportunistic parties provide them with exactly that.

You may be wondering as to how a campaign for the environment may be a leftist agenda. Well, the problem being that the same group of people who blatantly oppose each and every decision of the right-leaning existent government are campaigning for a safe Diwali. So you see, this is not so much war of ideologies as it is a war of personal  defamation. The right is obviously at fault today, but some reason for their outrage must also be laid upon the not so old misadventures of the left(A small example:a district in West Bengal was recently prohibited from celebrating Durga Puja, another important festival because it hurt the sentiments of the minorities there. Mind you Durga Puja doesn’t involve any violence or forced participation).

What I want to say is that this simple festival of lights has evolved into a complex tangled fight which threatens to consume the message of love any festival preaches.

Spare us your political games please. Let us enjoy with our families and spread the message of love.

Do campaign for environmental protection, but I beg you, not for political mileage. People are not stupid, if they realize you are speaking for the betterment of the earth, they will understand your message and comply.

P.S.: I myself have not burst a single cracker since the past 5-6 years.