It was the darkest day in the history of the Parliament of India when the elected representatives of the people pushed, beat and ransacked the premises of the temple of democracy. Last December 19, when two camps of MPs who were protesting in the Parliament premises created an ugly scene in the Parliament premises, MPs were injured on their knees and some were seriously injured. compassionate
Of course, though the camps blame each other, truth be told, together they are guilty of gradually defaming the climate of Indian democracy with their bitterness, which in recent times has degenerated into hatred towards each other. They have also spoiled the environment of the Parliament by behaving like ruffians in beating MPs.
It would be futile to look for a cause and effect sequence in such a freak phenomenon. It is a fact that two or three members of the ruling party suffered more serious injuries than that because they could only be victims of the opposition’s physical force. Members of the ruling party, including the Leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha, may have been pushed to the floor or manhandled, as they claimed.
Such scenes represent an unprecedented phenomenon in Parliament while physical violence and weaponization of useful objects like microphones, chairs and tables are said to occur in state assemblies. Why, India’s worst kind of political dramas involve even pepper spray to harm the opposition as legislators show immaturity when engaging with their political rivals to co-exist.
The irony is not complete in the fact that parliamentarians have traded accusations after being convicted of dragging Indian politics down to a level where those who oppose their chosen approach are seen as enemies and not fellow parliamentarians. The image of Indian politicians is already low enough as they are seen as effective businessmen who tend to increase power and pelf at the expense of the people who elect them as MPs.
Consider how ironic these developments are at a time when the best parliamentary values are supposed to have been imbibed in the 75 years since the constitution was made. Its celebrated Diamond Jubilee will now be remembered for all the wrong reasons after one of the most grueling sessions came to an ignominious end after days of sound and fury and bitterly contested divergent views, drawing in historical figures, from the first Prime Minister to the First Prime Minister. Minister Jawaharlal Nehru Ambedkar to Babasaheb Bhimrao, the chief creator of the Constitution.
A police complaint has been registered and an FIR has been registered against the Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha under the “offenses” of voluntarily causing grievous hurt, endangering life or personal safety of others, criminal intimidation, etc. Which shows how the basic principles of democracy have come to be threatened by the elected representatives themselves. As democracy faces its worst day in the country, Madame Roland’s death cry might be adapted to say – O democracy! What crimes have been committed in your name!