The Republic Needs A Healing Touch
The India Commentary view
View all posts by this Author
By Our Editorial Team
First publised on 2022-01-26 06:24:39
About the Author
The India Commentary view
View all posts by this Author
This year's Republic Day, a part of the year-long Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav in India's 75th year of Independence, is being celebrated against the backdrop of rising politics of hate that seeks to divide the nation along communal lines, including a call for genocide of minorities. But it also comes at a time when the country is successfully carrying out a massive vaccination drive in its fight against the pandemic and is successfully overcoming the hurdles placed in the path of economic growth.
The nation has achieved much in the last year in terms of reinforcing its medical infrastructure, vaccinating its people, easing restrictions to improve the flow of people and goods across the nation to help the economy grow. But it has not been able to vaccinate a section of its population against the communal virus and it is their mischief that is making another section think that either they are second class citizens in the republic or are not citizens at all.
President Ram Nath Kovind, in his address to the nation on the eve of Republic Day, rightly said that rights and duties are two sides of the same coin. "The observance of the fundamental duties mentioned in the Constitution by the citizens creates the proper environment for enjoyment of fundamental rights" he said. But if the citizens are not sure whether their fundamental rights will be upheld, their inclination to observe fundamental duties declines. Is it not the fundamental duty of a citizen to protest against what he or she thinks is not right? But if he or she does so and if the government arrests him or her and slaps sedition charges, his or her fundamental right to protest is violated.
The nation will progress only when the government understands that though rights and duties are two sides of the same coin, it is upon the government to ensure that rule of law is followed in an impartial manner to let citizens enjoy fundamental rights so that they can perform their fundamental duties. Fighting over what comes first will always lead to anarchy. The nation call ill afford the attitude of the government in treating all criticism as sedition. It is improper to label all those who raise their voices as enemies of the nation.
