Painting-Poesy #6 At Crossroads

The past few days I have tried, 

As I failed, I have cried. 

I tried to understand the rejoice, 

I failed to understand the choice.

The majority celebrates, I am told,

A minority is all that objects, does not let go.

I have heard this often in my life:

When being raped is passed off as a duty of a wife, 

When being beaten up toughens up a child

When being domesticated is better for a creature of the wild.

A woman's desires are suppressed, the majority is happy,

An artist's dreams are repressed, the majority is happy,

A state's existence wiped out, the majority is happy,

Democracy bows to authority, the majority is happy. 

Dissent has been vilified, 

Questions have been nullified , 

Joys have danced on fears, 

There has been little sympathy for tears. 

Consent: how do we practice it? 

Does 'right' supercede it? 

Do to 'power' we accede it? 

Can only the 'majority' exercise it? 

We have often spoken up, spoken against, 

It may take time but dialogue is the way, 

Said peace leaders when they held sway. 

Even their dissenters they allowed space. 

But new times are here, 

It is aggression that does steer, 

A contrary voice is shouted down, 

All that is venerated is one with the crown. 

I have tried, tried really hard

To understand the facts and the farce

But I fail to see how secrecy

And muffling voices can be a democracy.

The 'majority' opinion counts, no doubt,

But do we then contrary opinions just oust?

#Kashmir #India #Democracy #Consent

- Written on 9 August 2019.

- For many days the idea of democracy as seen through the lens of what has been happening with J&K and Article 370 has been on my mind as I grappled to understand what was unfolding and how this could come to be. 

As I stated in a tweet: I have faith in India even when I have little belief in the political leadership.

But around the world as more and more such incidents occur, the idea of democracy needs revisiting.

Posted first on Facebook and Instagram on 9 August 2019.