Supreme Idiots

May 14, 2007 | Filed Under Point of View 

In Gujarat we have a certain man named Niraj Jain, who apparently took great offense at a few paintings of Chandramohan depicting Vishnu, Jesus and certain other deities. I can respect that a person is hurt by certain visual depictions but I can’t respect what went on to happen after that.

I think the murder of democracy is a much greater crime. How can we claim to be a democratic country when a person is kept into jail for creating a painting? Not only that, but also forcibly barging in on University grounds and muffling the voices of protesters and closing the doors of historical documents that proves that people have been far more sensible in the past. It’s unfortunate that democracy is in the hands of people with force and not in those hands that wield pens and paintbrushes.

I ask a simple question - Does the dean of a Indian university have no standing? The protests and complaints made by Dr Panikkar don’t have any value in the face of the police or law. Doesn’t this mean that law and justice is not only not within the reach of common man but not even the head of a university with all his knowledge reach for it. It continues to be in the hands of the man with the stick.

I have never been an admirer of VHP or the BJP for its strong communal agenda. The sight of little boys wielding trishuls is still fresh in my mind and if a political party can inflict hate in little boys who have no concept of hate, it is extremely horrifying. My questions to Hindus of India is, does the VHP represent you? The organization seems to be believe so. It would be interesting to know how many of these VHPites have actually read the Gita or the Vedas, they seem to be blindly following what the self appointed leaders seem to be telling them to do.

What I am protesting is tagging of issues under religion and giving them a political agenda. We all know that these issues are just to get political mileage.

Subsequently, Chandramohan was arrested and charged under sections 153A, 114, and 295 of the Indian Penal Code for “promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion, race etc, committing acts prejudicial to the harmony of the public.” His examination works – which had been put up only for the sole purpose of the final examination - were apparently “offensive” to public religious sentiments.

Promoting enmity on grounds of religion, race??? What bullshit is that? Well most of politics is that, isn’t it? Art definitely not. Chandramohan is a simple student. don’t fuck his life.

Related links:
http://communalism.blogspot.com/search/label/Baroda
http://marginalien.blogspot.com/2007/05/crisis-in-baroda-faculty-of-fine-arts.html
http://fineartsfacultymsu.blogspot.com/
http://zigzackly.blogspot.com/2007/05/simultaneous-all-india-public-protest.html 

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