By Shayan Bisney
At the outset I would like to thank the Law Clerk of the Chief Justice of India who knowingly had to write another mundane speech for the Chief Justice of India but unknowingly inserted the word “cockroach” in the speech leading to something even the biggest opposition party could not do – united the youth of India.
As a citizen of India (If having an Indian passport makes me one) and a student not too long ago, I ask myself, why are students, salaried employees, retired veterans, civil society activists gathered at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi? What do they have to gain by being a part of a protest, while some allege a mob and label them as anti-national? Are they going to go back home gaining something personally?Are they being paid to be a part of this protest? If so, who is paying them? Does taking blows from alleged policemen in plain clothes help them sleep better at night? What would they get by risking their own lives and coming to protest in Delhi?
These are some of the many questions that occupy my mind and I wonder do I have the right answers to any of these questions. Sonam Wangchuk is a renowned education reformer and social innovator who has spent decades working to improve India’s education system, particularly in Ladakh. His relentless advocacy for transparency, accountability, and quality education has made him one of the country’s most respected public voices. He was on a fast for 26 days, not to gain anything personally but to make sure that the youth gain better education which is not deeply rooted in corruption.
For the first time since 2014, I have seen the youth of this country unite for a common cause. When I say youth, I also include the people who probably do not even know the name of the Chief Minister of his/her state nor know which political party is ruling their home state. Many of them have been supporters of everything right and wrong happening in this country. Dare I say, have been blind supporters of the ruling government or as they are better known as andhbhakts.
Today I see them very actively post on social media platforms that the education minister of this country Dharmendra Pradhan must resign. This marks a significant shift from thinking that this government can do no wrong to now holding one of its senior-most ministers accountable for the alleged mismanagement of his ministry and repeated examination failures. Why has the youth stood up against the police, compromised media, and the entire system?
‘Every cancelled exam a hearbreak’
They are simply exhausted. When aspirations collide with repeated failures of the system, symbolism loses its power. They want to work hard and get employment but in order to get employment, they need to clear exams and this very examination system has become so corrupt that all their effort eventually goes in vain. Millions of young Indians have sacrificed friendships, family time, festivals, sports, and countless moments of their youth studying 14 to 16 hours a day for an examination that lasts barely three hours.
Every cancelled exam is not merely a student’s disappointment, it is an entire family’s heartbreak. Keeping all this in mind, they assembled at Jantar Mantar saying finally they have seen enough. They give their blood, sweat and tears only to be cheated by a totally corrupt education system where merit-based candidates probably get last preference. The youth come to the government with one request – to hear them out.
To understand how year after year they are cheated and all the effort, sacrifice, money their families put in goes in vain. What does the government of the day do seeing the youth of the country come on the streets to get an answer from the government? They send the police armed with guns, rubber pellets and tear gas. They closed metro stations so that they could not reach or escape the protest site.
They shut down the internet in the area to make sure they do not communicate about the movement of the police. These youngsters came bearing no arms; they carried only hope and questions. They simply wanted answers from the government they had overwhelmingly elected in three consecutive general elections. The police, some in uniform but conveniently removing their name tags and some alleged police personnel in civil clothes showed no mercy to these protestors.
There were videos of male uniformed personal manhandling women protestors in the crowd. Mind you, none of them had any arms, all they had were questions, questions to which they wanted the government of the day to answer. They were answered with tear gas shells being shot at them; some allegedly being expired cannisters. What the youth of this country have done is start a very powerful movement, that enough is enough. The momentum of this has to continue to build.
It is very easy for armchair WhatsApp uncles to label these protestors as anti-national and say they are just troublemakers. These are the same uncles that send good morning messages in the morning and then spread hatred throughout the day in their residential societies and families. The traditional television media which is mainly followed by the elders has presented a very guarded approach and questioned protestors rather than question the people in power. They continue to report for their corporate heads and political masters trying to sway people away from the protest.
Yet this has done little to influence the movement, as most young people no longer turn to television media for information or to shape their views. A self-proclaimed world leader had once said that you can identify a rioter by his clothes. In this scenario I do not know if he is talking of the protestors or the ones allegedly a part of the police department. I saw videos of a visually impaired student who missed his classes and came to protest with the ones at Jantar Mantar.
What did he have to gain by this? He would probably have taken a blow from the police. He would probably go back home with a hit but a sense of satisfaction that he was a part of a movement which only demanded a better system and accountability. To Abhijeet Dipke, I do not know you personally, I do not know your background, I do not know who is funding you but I thank you for starting a much-needed movement in this country along with Sonam Wangchuk.
I thank you for making the people of this country believe that we continue to live in an electoral democracy and at the end of the day, their elective representatives need to be held accountable. To my friend Pranay Dodla and many others who participated in this protest from across the country, I thank you. You make people believe that it is important to come out of your comfort zones to do something for the country. It may not be monumental but the very fact that you showed up when it mattered speaks volumes about you.
To Rahul Gandhi and the collective opposition, you are lower in numbers in Parliament but you hold a higher vote share as a collective opposition compared to the government and it is your duty and responsibility to be a responsible opposition. Protest, discuss, talk but most importantly be there for the youth when it truly matters. You have a history of never missing an opportunity to miss an opportunity. I am glad you captured this opportunity but it is important to keep the momentum and pressure on the government.
Do not let political motives cloud the genuine demands of the youth. The picture of you being manhandled by the police and picked up with a bleeding nose will resonate in the minds of people for a long time. To the youth of India against whom I had this complain for the longest time, your state will go for elections soon. This country will go for elections in 2029 if on track. Make the right choice. Do not believe that there is only one option. If you do not exercise your franchise when it truly matters, you will be doing the biggest disservice to this nation. Remember the lathi blows and the tear gas shells fired at people your age by the government for showing up for a genuine cause that was troubling the youth of this country.
Take the SIR exercises seriously and make sure your name stays in the electoral rolls to make a difference. Do not follow what Balraj Chauhan said in Nayak, “pehle chilaenge, phir thak jayenge, phir bhool jayenge”. You will be distracted by lower fuel prices before election, a bribe mascaraing as a subsidy before the elections and promised everything in the world but remember the blows your friends took to make them come to bend to you.
The biggest test of a democracy is not election day; it is how the citizens behave post-election results. Voting is only the beginning of democracy. A healthy democracy depends on citizens continuing to question, engage with, and hold their elected representatives accountable between elections, not just casting a vote once every five years. We voted in 2024; we may not see the rewards we expect so slowly start telling the government at the ballot that enough is enough. I have seen the Anna Hazare movement bring down the UPA government.
I do not equate this movement the same way but I do believe the fact that the people of India have realized that the right to protest for accountability, for a free and fair education system is a democratic right they always had but did not exercise in the last 12 years. It is time they do and do so in large numbers. Questioning a government is not questioning the nation. Democracies grow stronger when governments are held accountable by the very citizens who elect them. Question the people in position of powers, question them relentlessly. Only that shall assure us larger accountability and corrective actions.
No government is perfect and it is the duty of the citizens of India to tell the government when they have erred and if the government does not listen to them, the world’s largest democracy can in no way take away your right to protest peacefully. Democracies rarely collapse because citizens ask too many questions. They weaken when citizens stop asking them.
(Shayan Bisney is a lawyer practicing in the High Court for the state of Telangana and the Supreme Court of India)
