      |
|||
Ramapura or Ravana Eliya - what next? By Gamini Perera I was at a meeting held at Nuwara Eliya on 28 Dec. 98 presided by the Hon. Dharmasiri Senanayake, Minister of Tourism, where diverse groups representing environmentalists, residents of Seetha Eliya, riparian users, farmers and cultivators using the water of Seetha Eliya Oya, a main tributary of the Uma Oya, Buddhist and other organisations and organisers of some political parties participated. One after another made logical and convincing presentations against the proposal and there was none to speak for the proposal. The lone Tourist Board Chairman was the only exception. In opening the discussion he stated that this is being initiated by the Board on the advice and recommendation of some Indian tour operators and private groups, though even Mr. Thondaman was against the proposal. At the conclusion, there was no doubt in anyone's mind that the Hon. Minister was convinced of the futility of pursuing his Board's proposal. He went to the extent of saying that the government should not introduce another cobra into its pocket when there were many of them already to deal with. Surely the state media have access to the detailed record of the proceedings kept at this meeting. It is the duty of any responsible media to access these records and also place the opposing views of those who were present, without presenting articles that are biased in favour of the proposal. Inconsistencies Secondly, does the government value the advice of some Indian tour guides and private organisations over the just objections made in the public interest and that of the country. The viability of this proposal has been established on speculative figures and not based on any reliable surveys. Is this backed by the number of Hindus from abroad who have visited this place over the last few years? If the Tourist Board has a genuine interest in this area, the right approach is to watch the reaction of the Indian pilgrims to this new found Hindu Mecca over the next few years even if they have to bring their own food as was claimed for the recent Pooja, a habit which these frugal pilgrims will in any event continue. During this period the statement by the head of the private group that 'we want to take soil from Seetha Eliya as a souvenir' must be closely monitored as these people will dig the entire hillside which is declared an 'erodible area' under the Law, until the 30 acres is flattened out and any semblance of a forest reserve with its rich and rare fauna and flora, soon disappears. Tamilise The media has also referred to the recent pooja held in Seetha Eliya. The three Mahanayakes and the 46 Buddhist organisations did object to holding the pooja on temple premises. This was precisely stated at the above mentioned meeting by the chief priest of Seetha Eliya temple. It was later allowed subject to certain conditions, as the government agent who was in near tears pleading with the organisations, and the chief priest who had been misguided by the local officials and others who were the front organisers, could not be let down on grounds of compassion. In fact Mr. Radhakrishnan, President of the Seethaiyamman Temple, in a written statement to the Buddhist organisations in the presence of the Government Agent declared inter alia that they are strongly opposed to the move of establishing a sacred area in Seetha Eliya and 'would join with you to resist any move to establish a sacred area in Seetha Eliya with all the forces at our command'. The full statement is available with Buddhist organisations for perusal by the media if need be. Sinister plan The entire proposal is also an insult of the legendary king Ravana who has been described in the Ramayana as a mighty and flamboyant king of Lanka, though Ramayana Lanka's identity stands challenged. There are enough compelling reasons to abandon ideas of building a sacred area in Seetha Eliya to deify Rama, or Hannuman who attempted to destroy Ravana, or Sita who was only awaiting her release from captivity. If the legend or more aptly the myth in Ramayana is to be ingrained in this place, it is most fitting that the name Seetha Eliya (cold plains) be changed to Ravana Eliya and that's all. After all there would have been no legend if not for Ravana. As promised, it is expected that Mr. Radhakrishnan and his compatriots will oppose the proposal of a sacred area with all the forces at their command. By R. M. B. Senanayake In a free and fair election the candidates should be able to exercise their rights of free speech and assembly without let or hindrance from anyone, in soliciting the votes of the people individually or collectively at public meetings. They should be free to display their names and party symbols on posters or banners as permitted by the election law. The run-up to the election saw the disruption of public meetings of the opposition candidates, display of banners and posters by the ruling party in violation of the election laws and physical violence unleashed on candidates by rival parties. On the day of the election itself there was as violence and terror with marauders and armed thugs parading the streets and by-ways in the vicinity of polling booths snatching ballot papers from the election of officials marking them fraudulently and stuffing them into the ballot boxes, thus depriving the lawful registered voters of their franchise. They have snatched poll cards from the voters and cast their votes depriving them of their vote. This is a fraud on the people. Can election be fair as between the different candidates unless they are treated equally. The polling agents of the opposition candidates have been threatened, intimidated and chased away from the polling stations leaving only the ruling party polling agents. The ruling party candidates have used the resources of the state in their election campaigns. They have been afforded special protection by a loyalist police force, a police force which ignored complaints of the opposition candidates and failed to protect their fundamental freedoms. The election is not only not a free and fair election, it is also a fraudulent election. The Commissioner does not have the power to annul an election, although he could have applied to the Supreme Court for a direction on the law. He has accepted the direction of the President and removed the patently fraudulent votes from the count which amounted to about 44000. But this is inadequate when the public who were entitled to vote were deprived of their votes and outsiders have cast their votes. A mere tally of numbers will not do when the whole process has been vitiated. Who is responsible for this robbery of the peoples franchise which they have enjoyed for 50 years. The Head of State campaigned personally for her party despite the obvious conflict of interest situation she placed herself in. It is her responsibility to maintain law and order and enforce the rule of law. She has confined herself to pious platitudes and noble but empty rhetoric .At the famous trial of Jesus Christ, Pontius Pilate, the Governor ,washed his hands off with the famous words 'what is truth'. The ancient Athenians, the founders of democracy punished those who undermined democracy. They ostracized them by voting to exile them not sparing statesmen and orators. They put the famous Socrates on trial because he was no lover of democracy and had supported aristocracy. They had suffered enough at the hands of the 30 tyrants. Monarchs who violated the rights of the people were executed in Britain in the 17th century and France in 1789. President Clinton is being impeached for obstruction of justice. We call upon the people to boycott all public functions presided over by the President or her Ministers. We call upon the Government to appoint a Commission of Inquiry where the members are appointed jointly with the other parties that contested the election. To inquire into all instances of abuse of power and misuse of state property by politicians and police officers during the election. We call upon the democratic minority parties to examine their conscience and see if they can expect a Government which has violated the civil and political rights of a substantial section of the majority community to protect the rights of the minorities or ensure a free and fair election in any projected PC election in the North or East under the Devolution Package. We call upon all citizens to realise that a Government that cannot or will not protect the fundamental rights of the people loses its legitimacy or authenticity. Between
the Lines By Kuldip Nayar Affirmative action like reservations for tribals and dalits - Mahatma Gandhi gave them the name of Harijan (Son of God) - has helped a bit. Some Indian administrative service man or a police officer from the dalit has made hole in the ramparts of upper castes, which have married their daughters to bridegrooms from lower castes. But this is for official positions. Even then these are rare forays into sociological rather than the traditional.. The centuries' old distance between the lower and the upper castes remains unspanned. There is prejudice, an ingrained feeling that everyone is born to a place in the Hindu society and that the place shapes one's whole life. Position is said to be fixed according to the merits one has earned in the past life. This belief has discouraged even the dalits from revolting. After independence, India banned untouchability constitutionally. But this has been of little avail because discrimination is not only a social custom but also a part of religious conviction. Even at the distance of 40 kilometres from New Delhi, one can see in villages separate habitations, separate recreational centres and separate drinking water wells. The panchayats, to which election is joint, have helped different castes mix with one another but the contact is superficial and temporary. Both are conscious that they will go back to their place at the end of the day. In former times, everybody in India knew just what his work would be when he grew up, because it was decided by his caste. The spread of education is breaking down caste barriers, insofar as choice of occupation is concerned. Today, an untouchable may, with education, become a leader of the nation. But members are likely to marry within their own caste because castes still have deep meaning in the Hindu world. India's first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru tried to fight the stigma of caste in his own way. He banned its use in application forms for jobs, loans and such other things. But the constitutional obligation of reservations towards scheduled castes (dalits) and scheduled tribes undid what he sought to achieve. They had to be listed separately to determine who were entitled to special legal benefits. Still the obligation - Dalit leader B. R. Ambedkar called it crutches - was only for 10 years from January 26, 1950 to January 25, 1960. The constitution said so specifically. Today reservations have got so enmeshed with politics that their extension is more or less automatic. No party can dare to annoy dalits and tribals, who constitute roughly one-fourth of the electorate. Had benefits reached the people for whom they were meant there would have been some justification for their continuance. But it is the creamy layer, which manipulates politics and comers jobs or the reserve seats in the state assemblies and the Lok Sabha. This is to the exasperation of upper castes, which want some end to reservations. Bright children of their families are leaving India due to very few openings in their own country. Today, a Brahmin, Kshatriya or Vaish from the three upper castes is as poor as a dalit. A better way to assess a person's eligibility may be his economic status. In India, caste and class are almost co-terminus. It is all the more reason that the basis to determine reservation should be living condition of a person. True, there is no discrimination against upper castes. But the older among them languish in villages unattended as dalits and tribals do. Currently, President K. R. Narayanan and India's chief justice A. S. Anand have jumped into the fray unwittingly. This is regarding the appointment of four judges to the Supreme Court. Reaction and counter-reaction have flown thick. The President's observation that weaker sections of society be given due consideration was correct but it was made in a wrong context. None can take exception to the sentiments expressed. But it is unfortunate that the President made them at a time when two dalit chief justices, K. G. Balakrishnan of the Gujarat High Court and Om Prakash of the Kerala High Court, were in the queue for promotion. Balakrishnan is 55, still two years younger than the age for elevation. Om Prakash has not found suitable by the collegium of judges. However, chief justice Anand over-reacted by remarking that merit alone is the criterion for all appointments to the Supreme Court and high courts. He did not have to repeat what is supposed to be obvious. Still can the chief justice say that all the appointments have been made on merit. He knows it that Congress, when in power had raised to the bench even briefless lawyers. Former law minister Bharadwaj was notorious for pushing his partymen to top positions in the judiciary. The real purport of reservation is being lost in the midst of controversy over conversions. Missionaries are being singled out by the Hindu fundamentalists for attack. Little does the Hindu community realise that the conversion is an escape for such dalits as cannot take the life of degradation and discrimination any longer. The society pays only lip sympathy to his privations. In contrast, the church offers them education and medical care, the two things which even government does not fulfill. If some dalits and the tribals, exasperated and harassed as they are, embrace Christianity, there is a simple explanation for it: they want to turn a new leaf in their life. I know of some Brahmins who embraced Christianity because they were sick of living in poverty. Hindu fundamentalists should try to improve the lot of lower castes instead of building barricades in the name of caste. Conversion to Islam has been negligible in the past years. It used to lead to confrontation and clashes. Both sides seem to have come to an understanding. Some maulvis like some missionaries may be propagating their religion and even offering conversion. But there is no constitutional bar against this. And why there should be one if anybody wants to change his religion? What the Bajrang Dal, Vishwa Hindu Parishad and other members of the RSS parivar should realise is that the low caste continues to suffer socially and economically. It has pocketed numberless indignities and yet there is no end of them. If some people end their suffering by leaving the Hindu-fold, why find fault with those who help them to do so? The Hindu society is callous and does not improve itself. Instead it takes revenge from those who offer a different life? The main thing is that religion is being mixed with politics. This is the evil against which political parties should guard against. Take what is happening at Amritsar. Akal Thakt head Ranjit Singh is trying to become another Bhindranwale. He has issued a notice to an editor for publishing a particular article in a newspaper. It is a familiar mix: religion with politics. Ranjit Singh is misusing his position. So long as one is pursuing one's religion without interfering in another's and without making political capital out of it, one should be allowed to do so. Every Indian enjoys the right to quit one's religion and embrace the other. The only condition is that he should do so freer without pressure. If the Hindu society wants anyone not to leave its fold, it can do so by setting a example of equality and selflessness. By burning churches or demolishing mosques or killing people of other faiths, is not going to help the society. Shankaracharya of Kanchi has also written to Prime Minister Vajpayee on the same lines.
|
|||
