Flag hoisting : panacea?

The Indian national flag which represents courage, sacrifice, peace, truth, faith and chivalry is the symbol of pride for every citizen of India. There will surface a sense of patriotic feeling by just looking at the flag and an immense amount of joy, when the symbol of pride is held firm in your palms. The entire struggle and courage of our freedom fighters is recognized every time the flag is hoisted.

Being an Indian, The constitution guarantees rights to every Individual to freely roam around to any corner of the country and equal rights to hoist a flag on the nation’s important days like the Republic day or Independence Day Etc.

The hoisting of a flag in our nation’s land is indeed a pride and representation of patriotism.
The hoisting of the flag when-India achieved Independence, on 15^th August 1947, was a mark of achievement and end of struggle. The Indian flag hoisted on the highest mountain peak of the world, Mount Everest on 29th May 1953, this is mark of an achievement of mountaineers. . . . Many similar occasions make us all bounce in joy and pride.

Now,

The BJP, a national political party and a majority-opposition of the house of representatives of India, wants to hoist the national tricolor flag in order to show the country’s presence in the constant curfew hit state and prove something to the nation.

Now I call this an utter-baseless, meaningless and senseless act-based on the timing of the act.

It is not wrong in deciding to hoist the flag to mark a great day but creating a controversy over it-isn’t nice enough. Running around media-shouting slogans- calling for hunger strikes? - bandhs? - creating hype-to hoist a flag in a state that has witnessed nothing other than riots and curfews over a long period of time is surely not chauvinism but a display of political strategy.

At the time when the country is in chaos, stuck deep in to the issues over insurgencies and separatist movements in the state of Jammu Kashmir, The growing Tribal problems and consequent rise in Maoist movements, price rises and scams in various departments across the country . . . .
The duty, of a politician or a leader is not marked “complete”, by hoisting of a flag, but, is to keep an effort in marching towards solutions towards these problems.

In similar lines of problems of India, the parliament is being put off, over the 2G Scam row, since a condemnable duration to disrupt the progress of the nation and there have been a lot of issues going around India simultaneously, like the ever growing rate of Inflation. Now, I really don’t understand the motto behind hoisting a flag right up in the northern state of the country at this point of a time.

“Hoisting” a flag or “not hosting” doesn’t solve even one of the problems that are persisting in the nation. In fact this may lead to aggravate the situation. Well, does this come under sedition? ‘’Potential threat to peace’’? Or violation of Flag code of India – which says the flag, may not be used for purpose of Business, Trade or Profession. I may have sounded like the colonial era government for once.

It should be clearly understood that-diverting public attention from the ongoing problems using situations like these, doesn’t solve the problems of the common man. In fact it is the tax money of the common man which is being spent on such notorious acts.

If any politician wanted to prove his love for the nation, I would urge him/her to concentrate on working through the problems, rather than creating new ones.

The CommonMan

In Today’s India,

The society's population is divided into few categories. The poor-The rich and The middle class. India is the largest holder of the later. He is often combined with the poor and known around as “the common man”. A very high frequent word from a politician’s lexicon.

So the poor-common man does his work or at least tries to do his best to earn his daily bread. He screens his surroundings, weighs the ups and lows in society around him, springs up a random discussion about the commonly corrupt politician with a co common man and satiates himself by reassuring himself that this is India and goes on with whatever is happening.

The common man- once in a while comes in contact with the Constitution of India.i.e. Once in 5 years (If I am being an optimist ), the feeling of being an Indian Citizen revives , the patriot reincarnates- either under influence of quack politicians soothing speeches or the endless packages these ones offer to the common man. Well, be it whatever, they vote! They exercise their right to participate in the seemingly- free & so called- fare elections---The universal adult franchise---This is a big occasion for the poor who get their daily wage for voting and for the middle class personnel, most of whom try their luck by voting –one more time- for a hope to see a working politician or to their favorite.

Now, this is the only time when the people and the politicians actually come into direct contact in a big way. The people expect something nice from these politicians and the politicians expect them to be voted for.

Now when I see around on what’s happening in our country, at this moment, it doesn’t make me, a common man, feel nice at all, in fact it makes me feel worried like every other citizen of our country.

a) There is Food inflation of 18%, a record high and sending the common man into nightmares for surviving

b) Added to this the interest rates in the bank loans go high and

c) The fuel rates take a step change every now and then on a frequent periodic basis.

d) The money we pay through taxes gets looted-in a mammoth-comes into light through a constitutional body-a government minister comes out and rules out the scam saying there is nothing of that sort ever existed. Now for this high drama to even actually be played, the public has to be considered fools, but in turn they have become ones

And many more . . . .

But, instead of serving and trying to reduce the woes of the never agitated-never frustrated-never vote denying common man, the politicians play around

a) The government and opposition leaders sit in front of the cameras and abuse each other-call each other corrupt. Their measure of being good is- being low on corrupt scale, which is a bad thing for the nation as a whole.

b) Down south, two power greed –highly rich-so called leaders, (in fact two of the many in the country) go on hunger strikes – call for disruption of social lives and so on.

c) The reporters who seemed gentle turned to be wolves in sheep’s clothing- and wanted to power head in the decisions-supposedly to be driven by people in a democratic country ,but instead , tried to make them driven by money makers of the society

Politicians disrupt the social life. They call for bandhs & protests. They stop trains and buses, or even break them down often and many more . . .

Now I call this – a turmoil.

The truth is,

The common man doesn’t care for what you 'politicians' think of the opposition or the governing official. We want work from you-and that’s why we voted for you. In a hope that you will work.

The common man shouldn’t suffer due to your egos and crave for power and blame games.

The common man shouldn’t go hungry for not being able to afford food because you didn’t do your duty for which you were voted to power.

The common man shouldn’t suffer tension due to frequent disruptions of social life because of your unwanted protests and hypes on the roads.

At the end of the day, what a common man asks for is just 2 meals per day and a peaceful sleep at the end of the night and a good society where they are offered all the basic human rights for a proper living.

I am no economist or an expert to produce suggestions for the price reductions or improving economic conditions. But I am aware enough to point out that ---- When there is money in the country-for allowing 1.78 lakh crores to be looted – then there is definitely money available – to make common man’s common commodities available at an affordable price. It just takes the intentions to work on the problems to do so.

The oppressed state is a very temporary state -the transition will only be to a revolution - and never happens with a warning or a transitory intermediate stage in between these two. So before the common man turns himself into a spear against the corrupt- you shall amend and make lives of a common man-back to normal.

So Before it gets too late . . . set your act right & Give the common man his Bread!