Diary Entry #5 WHAT INDEPENDENCE AND FREEDOM MEANS TO AN AUTHOR

We are an independent and sovereign country but the struggle for freedom continues even today. What is this ‘freedom’ that evades us and what is it that we the people of this ‘largest democracy in the world’ have yet to achieve? India got its freedom from the British Rule seventy years ago but unfortunately, the dream of the people of India for a secular liberal democracy was sabotaged and shattered by visionless and opportunistic political practices. Since the independence we have witnessed that democracy turned into a quagmire where freedom of expression, freedom of dissent and freedom of creative expression sunk. On the other hand, people were further divided on the basis of caste, sub-caste, ethnicity, regionalism, language, religion and color.

For an author freedom is a big word. In my view, in a mature democracy people should have freedom of choice without the interference of the government. Every individual should be respected for his/her choices, political or religious notions and to have an opinion on life. If people in a democratic country are being attacked, humiliated or killed in the name of caste, religion, language or ethnicity, it ceases to be a democracy. Sadly, India has now plunged into such tyranny because since independence our political system failed to achieve social and economic equality and a liberal democracy based on the principle of humanity.

No author can imagine independence if there is no freedom to write, criticize or attack orthodox practices and institutions. It is the duty of a writer to question the factors and forces which use politics, religion, and caste to divide and rule the society and to decimate humanity in general. If writers and creative people are not allowed to question and express dissent, it can be said that democracy is immature and freedom unattained. In recent years, three of our major liberal voices and thinkers i.e. Dr Narendra Dabholkar, Prof Govind Pansare, Prof MM Kalburgi were brutally murdered in broad day light but the culprits are yet to be brought to justice. Over 145 writers, artists and creative people belonging to different Indian languages had returned their state or national Sahitya Academy or other prestigious awards but the regime remained unmoved and adamant over politically motivated intolerance. This indicates that our struggle for mature democracy is yet incomplete.

On the other hand, authors like Perumal Murugan & P Jimshar were forced to stop writing and cases were filed against them by religious fundamentalists. But yet again, our judiciary is our hope which still stands firmly in support of writers and those who believe in the freedom of expression and dissent. If our political system has failed us, it is our judiciary which is our hope and this hope gives us the power to continue the struggle of making India a perfect liberal democracy in the future, a democracy that becomes a role model for the world that is ravaged by hate and violence.