“Liberal is not a term of abuse, but should be a badge of pride,” says author sagarikaghose OpenFuture
democracy? This is the question that people both inside and outside of the country are increasingly asking. Since gaining power in 2014 and cementing it in elections last May, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has governed as if Hindus are the only real Indians.
The Economist: In your book, you argue that traditional liberalism aligns with classical Indian values and history. Please explain.Yes, I audaciously link liberal values to spiritual-religious traditions in India to argue that values of individual freedom can’t be dismissed as mere imitations of the West or part of the colonial hangover from the British Raj. It is wrong to demonise the quest for individual freedom as just the elitist creed of those whom nationalists’ attack as Macaulay-putras .
Liberals in India need to be really, really brave; be prepared for attacks and undertake collective action to push their cause. Perhaps a liberal revival can be created if liberals move out of their comfort zones and engage with people across the country on why freedom and liberty are important. It’s very difficult in India because the state—what I call the “Big State”—is so overbearing and intrusive that everyone is scrambling for pieces of the government pie.
Does Priya Pillai of Greenpeace want to voice her views in London? Sorry, she was once banned from travelling. The epics, particularly the Mahabharata, are tales of heroes constantly plagued by self-doubt. They constantly debate the right course of action. The Gita is a treatise of Arjuna’s tryst with self-doubt. The Upanishads are question-and-answer sessions on philosophy. The Ramayana’s heroes are as flawed as they are noble.
Don’t citizens have the choice about whether they want meagre or extravagant weddings? Can citizens in a democracy be forced into austerity as a moral command? Why should citizens be instructed by the prime minister on their behavioural choices? It is as if only the government and the prime minister know what is in the best interests of over a billion mindless children who apparently believe they are citizens of India! It is an infantilising of an electorate empowered to vote!The drive across...
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