“Nation is larger than region”
If any region dares to air their grievance in a peaceful democratic way supposed against any Central policy (like say NRC-NPR-CAA), they are often advised in a solemn tone --- “Region not greater than nation” or “Nation is larger than region”!
The fact remains that just like countless drops of water make up an ocean or water body, similarly a nation gets formed by conglomeration of different regions only. Thus there lies no existence of any nation without regions. Can anybody dare to say that his/her liver or nose is not greater than his/her body? What would be the destiny of the body without its vital organs? Rather the body can function normally only when all parts of it remain intact, healthy and fit. Similarly interests or welfare of different regions can never be sacrificed at the altar of the nation. Had Western Pakistan not offered a raw deal to its Eastern counterpart, perhaps the nation would not have disintegrated to give birth to Bangladesh. Thus instead of according superior status to nations over regions, the latter should be nurtured and developed with utmost neutrality to ensure a strong nation. After all, if any particular region gets exploited or left languishing in an undeveloped state, it is the nation itself which ultimately suffers because the concerned region is part of the very nation only. So what is the necessity of engaging in a duel between region and nation?
“Nation larger than individual”
In the year 2006, the “industry-obsessed” Left Front Government of West Bengal(claiming to be the “sole guardian of the downtrodden”!) felt no qualms in evicting the farmers and sharecroppers with brutal force from the green fertile lands of Singur, Hooghly district. Apart from their land, the livelihood of that poor lot also were ruthlessly snatched. Why? So that the privileged class can ride Nanos and the Tatas laugh all the way to the bank! Apart from a barrage of flimsy excuses furnished so as to defend its brutal action, the think tank of that regime used to proclaim “Nation is much larger than individuals”!
The same “logic” was forwarded to defend demonetisation. Hundreds are collapsing to death in inhuman bank queues, children dying without treatment in hospitals for its refusal of accepting “illegal notes”, farmers committing suicide due to crash crunch, senior citizens having a hell of time in exchanging depositing and withdrawing money, poorest of poor labourers are finding themselves jobless overnight ---- amidst that hell, the sponsors and rabid supporters of demonetisation, specially of privileged background, were offering sermons after sermons from their ivory towers “Nation infinite times more important than individuals”!
Who will enlighten these heartless “intellectuals” in the guise of “nationalists” that mountains to oceans, malls to multiplexes, industries to cars or notes to plastic cards do not make the nation! Rather it is the individuals who form the real nation! So the State needs to be responsible for a single individual also. Even if the human right of food, land, livelihood, security, dignity and life of a single individual gets hurt, it is none other than the nation itself which gets assaulted. So this much abused and exploited statement smacks of supreme barbarity and inhumanity.
“Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country”
President John F Kennedy, in his inaugural speech, might have made this statement in a particular perspective. But this statement often gets cleverly exploited by the concerned authorities to hide their supreme failures in ensuring welfare to the lives of common people.
Innumerable sons and daughters of the concerned country might remain suffocated by the daily poison of hunger, poverty, malnutrition, joblessness, illiteracy and “live” and die in a much much worse condition than pet dogs and cats of the rich. Far from trying to extricate the downtrodden from this vicious cycle and inhuman ordeal, the concerned mother country squanders money to pamper the upper middle class and rich and play to the gallery of extravagant film festivals and gigantic statues, lofty flags or Bullet trains. No, the downtrodden should of course never never plead or demand their minimum entitled dues and human rights! Rather with a stomach full of starvation and hunger and a body “decorated” with malnutrition and all sorts of diseases, their prime noble and patriotic duty remains asking themselves what they can do for the nation! Oh what a unique idea envisaged by the vested interests to relieve themselves of all duties, responsibilities and obligations towards the downtrodden and instead make those very neglected deprived people remain accountable to the nation and morally blackmail them by asking what is your contribution for the nation! Three cheers for the exploiters of this statement!
(The views expressed are personal)
