Yes, The country is pained
The expectation of people that the first ‘Mann Ki Baath’ of this year would be in support of the country’s farmers has been dashed. Instead, Prime Minister Narendra Modi tried unsuccessfully to mobilize the country against the farmers agitation by his statement that the “nation is pained by the way the National Flag was humiliated on Republic Day.”
There is no doubt that the people of the country have been anguished about what transpired in Red Fort on Republic Day but not for the ‘humiliation of the National Flag’. The Prime Minister has also not clarified how the ‘National Flag’ was humiliated in Red Fort. Other than the fact that one group of miscreants entered Red Fort and hoisted two flags, no other incident occurred there. The group did not in any way harm the building.
But the Prime Minister’s words reflect the intense pain that this incident triggered in him. Though such an incident should not have occurred, the failure of the police was mainly responsible for the incident. Therefore, if the National Flag was humiliated, the government should take responsibility for the act. Farmer leaders have already clarified that farmers were not responsible for this incident. It has also been revealed that the person who took the leadership of the group that hoisted the flag in Red Fort had campaigned for the BJP during the last elections. This incident now seems to be a conspiracy to send a wrong message to the country about the protestors.
Already, farmers have incurred substantial losses protesting for their rights. In this context, the conspiracy against the farmers on January 26th is something that pains the whole country. But this pain does not seem to have touched the Prime Minister.
It is surprising that the nation-wide rally that took place that day did not attract the attention of Modi who said that what happened in Red Fort caused anguish to the country. For the first time in the history of the country, a parallel farmer Republic Day celebration that was an alternative to the official celebration took place.
In a historical move, a large number of farmers, such numbers not seen earlier, participated in the rally with their tractors. Who are these people, where are they from, why did they come, what are their difficulties, aren’t they part of the country? Such questions did not seem to arise as Modi’s ‘Mann Ki Baat’ did not answer any of these questions.
In the last two months of protests, more than 60 farmers have died due to rains, cold, and ill-health. Three died due to suicide. But still, the farmers have been peacefully and democratically protesting for the last two months. The country has been in deep anguish seeing what the farmers of the country are experiencing. It was the Prime Minister’s duty to respond to their pain. Following the Red Fort incident, a group threw stones at the farmers who were peacefully protesting reacting. This group was projected as ‘angry locals.’ But according to ‘Alt News’, this group of stone pelters was in fact led by BJP workers. Having unleashed his own party workers against farmers, the Prime Minister’s words that the country is pained is simply inhuman and insensitive.
What is National Flag? Does the Prime Minister think it is a motley collection of three colours? By embracing three colours, the National Flag conveys several messages. The green colour in the flag represents the country’s farmers, agriculture, and prosperity. Today, the representatives of the green colour in the National Flag are protesting in Delhi’s borders and the police are wielding lathis against them. Miscreants are attacking them with stones. These are all covert attacks against the National Flag.
After India gained independence, the farmers salvaged the country from the scarcity of food. When hands were extended towards foreign shores for wheat and rice, farmers of Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh made the country self-reliant through what is now called as Green Revolution. The fact that these farmers have come to the streets demanding justice is actually a humiliation to the National Flag. If Modi were to say the country was in pain because of all of these reasons, we could have endorsed it.
But, the controversial farm laws have been passed to protect the interests of two industrialists Adani and Ambani at the cost of the farmers is also a humiliation to the country. Republic Day is not just an exhibition or viewing of lifeless tableaus on Raj Path. Republic Day is rendered meaningful if the Constitutional rights that are accorded to the people of the country are not in danger. When a large group of farmers are on streets protesting, there is no meaning in the celebrations that take place in Rajpath. Such a celebration would render the Republic Day a farce.
By stating that ‘the humiliation of the National Flag has pained the country’, the Prime Minister is indirectly inciting his supporters against the protesting farmers. When the entire country is in protest in Delhi, what does Narendra Modi term as a ‘country’? Does he regard the media houses and TV channels that have become the slaves of the government as the entire country, and address them? The Prime Minister should first give up the belief that he can derail the farmer protest by issuing inciting statements and getting protests organized against the farmers Only by regarding the people gathered in Delhi borders as country men and making an honest attempt to understand their pain can the present conflict end logically.
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BJP worker’s 16-year-old son allegedly casts eight votes in Uttar Pradesh’s Farrukhabad; Video viral
Lucknow (Farrukhabad): A viral video has surfaced showing a 16-year-old son of a BJP worker allegedly casting eight votes to the saffron party during the ongoing general elections in Uttar Pradesh. The video has sparked controversy, and the opposition has urged for prompt action from the Election Commission of India, reports scroll.in.
The video shared by the Samajwadi Party President Akhilesh Yadav on micro-blogging site ‘X’, showed the youngster recording himself while casting multiple times in a series of instances. The incident reportedly took place in Khiri Pamaran village, which falls under the Aliganj Assembly constituency within the Farrukhabad parliamentary seat. Mukesh Rajput, the sitting MP, is the BJP candidate in this constituency. Polling in Farrukhabad occurred on May 13 during the fourth phase of the general election.
In the viral video, the youngster is seen casting eight votes in total, all for the BJP, one by one with different clippings.
The youngster in the video has been identified as Rajan Singh Thakur, confirmed his father, Anil Singh Thakur to the Scroll.in. Anil Singh Thakur is the gram pradhan (village head) of Khiri Pamaran and a member of the BJP.
Anil defending his son told the Scroll that the ‘Video misrepresented his son,’ and claimed that the voting was done when the machine was being tested in some instances and other clipping of him voting on behalf of mentally and physically disabled voters was merged and made into a video.
Despite the Anil's caims, the video has drawn significant criticism. Subhash Chandra Prajapati, the additional district magistrate of Farrukhabad, confirmed to the Scroll that the administration will file a case soon. He mentioned that the returning officer is investigating the matter following a directive from the chief electoral officer in Lucknow.
The opposition has been vocal in its criticism, with Akhilesh Yadav demanding action from the Election Commission. In his social media post, Yadav accused the BJP of undermining the electoral process and described the party's booth committee as a "loot committee." The Congress party also called on the Election Commission to take action, in a ‘X’ post the party wrote, “Dear Election Commission…are you watching..a boy is voting 8-8 times ... .at least wake up now.”
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, took to ‘X’ to express, “Fearing and seeing their defeat, the BJP is attempting to undermine democracy by pressuring government machinery to deny the mandate. The Congress expects all officers performing election duties to remember their constitutional responsibilities despite any pressure from those in power. Otherwise, once the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) bloc government is formed, actions will be taken to ensure that anyone will think ten times before violating their 'Oath to the Constitution'."
Following the video's circulation, Naval Kishor Shakya, the Samajwadi Party candidate in Farrukhabad, filed a complaint with the district election officer. Shakya's complaint alleges that Rajan Singh Thakur cast votes after snatching voter information slips from other voters and that he was assisted by Dinesh Thakur, the local police station's station house officer. Shakya has called for re-polling at the affected polling center.
In a related incident earlier in May, Gujarat Police arrested two BJP workers for allegedly casting bogus votes and live-streaming the act on social media in the Dahod constituency. The Election Commission conducted re-polling at the affected booth following the incident.
The opposition INDIA bloc, including the Congress and the Samajwadi Party, has repeatedly accused the Election Commission of failing to take prompt action against election model code of conduct violations.
अपनी हार सामने देख कर भाजपा जनादेश को झुठलाने के लिए सरकारी तंत्र पर दबाव बना कर लोकतंत्र को लूटना चाहती है।
— Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) May 19, 2024
कांग्रेस चुनावी ड्यूटी कर रहे सभी अधिकारियों से यह अपेक्षा करती है कि वो सत्ता के दबाव के सामने अपनी संवैधानिक ज़िम्मेदारी न भूलें।
वरना INDIA की सरकार बनते ही ऐसी… https://t.co/fk4wXL8QZy
