http://www.caravanmagazine.in/reportage/mulakat-afzal

Truth is a priceless commodity! It will prevail even if injustice was done to anyone. Our motto is Satyameva Jayate! If Afzal Guru was implicated wrongly then surely it is very bad.. but, at this point of time we cannot believe in hearsay. People have different stories, I don’t really know if it is the truth. We live in strange times… I’ve full sympathy for his family. yet, the culpability of the crime for which he was held responsible was enormous.. If he was not guilty then surely injustice was done by none other than the supreme court, which I’d not like to believe based on this article (http://www.caravanmagazine.in/reportage/mulakat-afzal ) alone. Yet, I’d like to give hope to people who support him and “people like him” that truth will prevail ultimately.
It is still time for people who support militancy and who sympathize with them to have course correction and lead Kashmir to a better time. Picking up arms is not the answer… if that was the case then, people of the most backward region of our country, like Bihar would have certainly picked up arms against the people of Delhi, Maharashtra and other states for discrimination. But, we have chosen to fight for our betterment with a different strategy by educating ourselves and fighting the battle against poverty and other social evils. To pick up arms in the first instance was wrong… to drive out lakhs of Kashmiri Pandit was wrong… it was nothing short of religious cleansing.
Yet two wrongs do not make things right. For example, how do you explain the bomb blast of Hyderabad that killed so many people… there is no confirmation as to  who did it… but, I’d like to believe it that terrorists did it who were not happy with Afzal’s hanging. If they try to take revenge by this method, on hapless citizens like “me” who roam the streets of Delhi and other places for their daily bread & butter and employment, there would be no goodwill for them in India and elsewhere even if some foreign residing people and elite people who are fully secure and live in comfort of their home without anything to worry, are there to support them! These people do not know what struggle of life is all about… tell me, is it justified to bomb a city even if Afzal’s  hanging was wrong?
the solution of Kashmir is with India not with Pakistan or being Independent as was with Punjab. we will not gift away Kashmir to anyone or any country, come what maybe the cost… let them bomb every city in India but we will not negotiate with terrorists and we’ll  not part away with our land. The conditions like that of Kashmiri pandits will not be recreated… it is not a one off situation, this is war, where both side of people will get affected whether it is Afzal like “innocent” or people like “me” on the streets of Hyderabad. The elites of both sides can have fun from the sidelines…. and cheer for which ever side they like to feel good about. But, the common people of this great country are also ready to pay the price and are actually paying the price every day of their life!

Although, its good to compare the development achieved by USA in due course of time since its Independence and India’s own journey since 15th August 1947. But, its not a small time… USA got its Independence on 4th of July 1776. But, both of these countries follow a different form of government. We in India follow the Westminster type of Parliamentary democracy whereas in the USA they follow a Presidential form of government. My immediate concern is, was our founding fathers so off the mark that they chose a wrong system of governance for our own country, that they couldn’t fathom the pros n cons of the Parliamentary democracy properly before implementing it? My answer to such a question is that, I fully stand by the constitution of India in totality. And our founding fathers were more concerned than today’s editors and today’s out of touch intellectuals.

I oppose this notion on basically 3 counts:

1. Any system of governance has worked well for western democracies.

2. There are other countries too who follow Presidential form of government. Do they compare equally well with the USA?

3. By following Westminster style Parliamentary form of government, we’re actually helping in decentralization of Power to the people.

Now, I’d like to discuss the above reasons in detail to make myself more clear on my stated position. Although, the above reasons are self explanatory.

Reason no.1. To compare India to any developed western democracy to highlight the flaws of the system in India is not correct. It’s simply because they’ve evolved over a period of time. For example, the USA got its Independence on 4th July 1776. Similarly, for other western nations like France, the Netherlands, or the UK. These nations have become prosperous and developed in some 200-400 years of evolution of their systems. The Socioeconomic indicators of these nations are marvellous. So, any form of governance will do well in such circumstances.

Reason no.2. Let’s not be myopic in our vision of the future by blindly following a certain path. Let’s look at all aspects of the system. For example, has it worked for other countries who have followed this vision. e.g. that is to say, has it worked for Sri lanka, Russia, Afghanistan or Mexico. Here we see for every USA we have many Srilankas or Russias who have not done quite well. they do not compare favourably with the USA.

Reason no.3. Its a very basic logic. By following the multi-party Parliamentary democracy we are actually giving a share of power to all sections of the society in the nation building. It is a tedious process to reconcile all the differences in such a society with large diversity but surely it is the cure of all other ills that may follow if we do not follow this path. And we are evolving each day to transform our system. Our citizens are now waking up to tackle the ills of the system such as corruption. It is noteworthy to understand that no system is perfect but we have to work tirelessly to make it perfect or free from all ills.

By vesting all powers in one single individual we can have short term gains but ultimately it may not work in long run.It may work the country, but that is hypothetical and highly debatable. We’re here for nation building not for playing trial and error game. The system in the USA has been perfected over a long period of time and their society have also changed considerably since its Independence.
Ours is also a dynamic society and we are in the process of perfecting our system which is not very good in the present state but this doesn’t mean that we simply give up and jump the wagon to the other mode of governance. In other words, we shouldn’t ape the west blindly.

Ab na ho Qabul to Qismat ki baat hai…
Ameen Keh rahe hain Woh meri DUA ke saath!!!

Mere Wajood Mein Wafaa Ki Roshni Utaar De,
Phir Itna Pyar De Ke Mujhey Chahaton Se Maar De,
Suna Hai Teri Ek Nazar Sanwarti Hai Zindagi,
Jo Ho Sakey To Aaj Meri Zindagi Sanwar De….!!