Protest

Prafulla Kumar Mohanty

Protest by simplistic logic is dissent or disapproval; against an idea or law or religious - nonreligious value systems. But primarily it stems from a fear of survival constraints. This fear is at the root of all human activities. When the Czarist regime became tyrannical the havenots and suppressed revolted. Revolt, protest, rebellion , dissent are all close cousins. The tyrant too indulges in tyranny out of fear of his own survival. Any protest or revolt against  repression is also survivalist in its core. Therefore what is sacrosanct about protest? All religious teachers propound profound theories to live with some measure of happiness protesting against Nature or the Human Condition. They create gods of exclusive dimensions and often protest against each other's gods. In the pre- enlightenment ages fear induced physicality enforced its own logic only to survive. It was more emotional than intellectual. But when enlightenment dawned Reason was Supreme. Reason gave birth to Science, Humanism and Progress. But reason doesnot have well defined contours true for all ages and climes. The Romantics however, did not accept reason as the panacea of all problems. The French Romantic Symbolist poet Charles Baudelaire wrote, " There are but three groups worthy of respect; the priest, the warrior and the poet. To know, to kill, and to create." But how many human beings of any hue would subscribe to Baudelaire's perception?

In the modern world the State, Politicians and the Executive forces - the Bureaucracy, the Police and the Corporates are the destiny makers. The state is controlled by the politicians and the society by the other two groups. The producers -suppliers have their 'poets', that is innovators, the bureaucracy and politicians have their creative idealism. Religion in this system becomes a subsystem. But what we see today is a clash between the political law makers and the religious lawgivers. The politicians too are in a sense 'religious' groups for they believe in the ideals of certain master thinkers who had protested intellectually ( that is by Reason) against religious ideals. This protest aimed at  replacing the powerful religious Masters by their own Socio- intellectual rebels as they believed in Progress. It was nothing but a power struggle between two different ideologies: One believing  in Love, Submission to the unseen powers controlling human destiny and the other believing in human Power Controlling and guiding man's social destiny. Religious love was replaced by human love of man and the king or the President - Prime Minister took over. In the undeclared war between  Love and Power, the latter won as it became more acceptable for human well being.  But power of any kind is divisive: it is inbuilt, power is always challenged by rival aspirants for power.

What we see today is this clash of power groups, be it religious, political, economic or even racial. The Islamic state tries to push out of existence the Political establishments, Democrats protest against the Republicans, the Labour against the Conservatives, the Liberals against the Nationalists and so on. Today protests manifest in the form of sanctions by the World Power Groups  and terrorism by the weak. In India the Hindu Nationalists try to consolidate the secular values of India in a ruthless manner much to the chagrin of the religious minorities. Since the minorities, especially the Muslims feel threatened by the current power group they protest anything that is said or done by the ruling group. The Congress, Left Parties and others who indulge in appeasement politics have decided to protest laws that are meant for the general wellbeing of this country.

The CAA ( Citizenship Amendment Act) and the proposed National Register of Citizens hold no ghosts or hidden knives but certain groups feel that these laws are against their ideologies. The Muslim population in India is growing whereas Hindus, Sikhs, and Parsies in the  neighbouring Muslim countries have declined exponentially. The Indian administration aims at equal rights, equality of law and uniform civil code. But the minorities cling on to the religious laws and protest against the Government's new initiatives. The opposition takes this protest as an opportunity to overthrow the current political system. Hence protests are fuelled by them to create an atmosphere of unrest.

When protests turn violent the society loses balance. Bloody protest means an undeclared war. Such things are the repetitive features in human history. All these things happen and will happen because there is no Reason controlling human affairs. All protesting groups are motivated by reason only - they argue. But who will decide whose Reason is more life  sustaining?