A Cry For Humanity and the 2024 Bengal Uprising | Sunil Ray

Now it is this side of Bengal. It is the state of West Bengal of the Indian Republic that has been witnessing a massive uprising of its people against crime against humanity. It is peoples’ movement, which is spontaneous in nature, non-violent in its approach and solidarity in its bond with all who want to retrieve humanity from its deep crisis in the state. It stands now before the graveyards of great humanists and revolutionaries born in Bengal from the days of Renaissance to reclaim humanity in all its glory. The ‘last straw’ in the series of crimes against humanity in Bengal is that of barbaric killing of a woman doctor in a government hospital at Kolkata. It is the R.G.Kar Medical College and Hospital. Such a crime against humanity that crossed all limits of tolerance that the present–day society can ever imagine has literally shaken the central nerves of the women folk of the state particularly, besides, others from all walks of life. The cry for humanity is palpable and now echoing on all sides of the state and gradually has spread over the country and across the world. I am writing this piece when a movement is increasingly gaining indefinable momentum, not knowing where and how it is going to end. It is here that I may choose to maintain that the heinous crime against the women doctor is a trigger for such an upheaval to come about. We must view the latter against the backdrop of several such incidents along with other excruciating activities the state had witnessed during last several years under the misrule of the ruling party.

Hegemonic control

Let me argue that such a historic uprising is the outburst of massive accumulation of resentment and grudge against the ruling party that has reduced the people and its culture to the level which is no way different from ‘slavery’ of medieval India. The latter is institutionalized by the ruling party which is continuously engaged in retaliatory politics of violence to exercise its hegemonic control. Central to all is corruption, a practice which is also institutionalized to benefit from it by a section of the people affiliated to the party in power at all levels. Along with the members of the local party bureaucracy, the unemployed youths who, in exchange, express their fidelity to the ruling party are also beneficiaries of such favor. The unemployed youth seem to find extortion as an easy option to make money in the absence of any dignified job And, finally, it is the terror tactic, an indispensable armor at the hands of the ruling party to reign in, command and stifle the voice of the dissidents against authoritarian rule of the party in power that has captured significant space in the ‘political culture’ of Bengal. It is set in motion to exercise hegemonic control over the people. It is not, therefore, so difficult for one to discern its profound ramification on each aspect of the public life in the state. Lesser is talked about its dystopian manifestation during the time of election being conducted in the state at all levels from panchayat to parliament, better it is. What does it mean to the people? It means that either you fall in line with the dictates of the ruling party, in whichever aspect of public life it is, or else, pay the price. The barbaric attack and brutal killing of the young doctor appears to be the price she paid.

The ineluctable link between what happens at the micro level and the objective the ruling party aims to achieve at the macro or state level politics may appear slightly obfuscating. This happens due to the democratic veil, under the garb of which autocratic rule functions. No matter if it could function by spearheading tyranny, extortion, murder, intimidation and corruption. The anarchic strategy that tramples the democratic values from the rural hinterlands to the city precedes everything for the ruling party to remain in power uninterruptedly. Continuously instilling fear in the minds of the people gains strategic importance for hijacking the individual liberty. Freedom is then redefined within the scale of choice as given by the ruling party leading to the emergence of what I call ‘parasite society of subordinates’.

Any opposition whatsoever to these practices, is bulldozed to see that such an opposition no longer exists. Any threat perception, if at all exist against the party activists, is thwarted by the ruling party that immediately stands behind them who indulge in these undemocratic activities. Worse it is, when police administration is found hand-in -globe with the local party activists in carrying out them. Sandeshkhali episode glaringly exposes the nexus. They could succeed in almost everywhere in their endeavor except in those place where opposition political parties are found to be able to retaliate against the anarchy spearheaded by the ruling party.

Helplessness

A state of helplessness, as a consequence, has pervaded the social life of the people of Bengal. Being conscious of what the worst consequences could be to the ruling party in terms of its brutal image and fearing its backlash, propaganda machinery is put in place. Its job is to feed people false narratives and instantaneously create route to escape from its immediate engagement. The appeasement politics is assigned to play the crucial role in this respect as well. It works in two ways, one, through appeasing the religious minorities and, two doling out of freebies to appease particularly the women folk and the impoverished. The sole objective is to ascertain the continuity of the ruling party in power.

With no ideological perspective whatsoever, and, therefore, scientific vision of economic development of the state, appeasing the needy through doling out freebies and other benefits constitute the development plank of the party in power. The development discourse of the state never goes beyond it. I have argued elsewhere (Mainstream, June 17 and 24, 2023, Telegraph 4.7.2023) why freebies doled out can never trigger off economic growth. Rather, it destroys the development tempo by turning the needy in to parasite. Despite this, the ruling party have opted for it. The reason is simple. The needy people keep waiting for their needs to be met even if it is half of what they require. Once met, the ruling party gains strategic importance for electoral victory. This may be the reason why the creation of employment opportunities has never received development priority. If the outcome of several investment summits at huge cost of the state exchequer (the latest one in Spain) for attracting FDI is that of the state not even sharing one percent of the total FDI flow to India, one can understand how precarious the development scenario the state is beset with. The space for dignified employment creation within the state shrinks further due to the poor response of the corporate sector towards investment. The economy of the state, as a result, is put on the road to decline. It has aggravated the state of helplessness further. But false promises of the ruling party are abound only to create ‘oasis of hope’.

While such a political engineering opens up the route to limitless corruption, slavery associated with tyranny, cultural root of Bengal which is humanitarianism that grew during Renaissance is axed. The root, as we know, became much deeper, stronger, expansive and that transcended over generations through the teachings of the great social reformers, revolutionaries, religious icons, poets, writers, and artists etc. who all were born in Bengal. It goes without saying that the foundation of their creation, imagination, and performance either as a revolutionary or freedom fighter or poet or writer or a religious preacher is essentially humanitarianism. However, when it is turned into a travesty under the misrule and left to be blemished in crisis forcing the people to the state of helplessness, nothing other than stiff opposition is chosen as the only way out to get out of it.

Humanitarianism as political ideology?

It is a crisis of humanitarianism and the Bengal uprising must be understood as a response to it to overcome. Its unique feature that makes it different from many other movements is solidarity that has brought people from all walks of life together to build up resistance against injustice perpetrated against them. It is a resistance movement, the solidarity movement that has given voice to all to demand justice for humanity. Humanitarianism is seen to be a new ideological plank that defies all sectarian ideology and divisiveness among people based on gender, religion, caste, creed, region, language or in other form. What else can prove this than the massive mobilization of men, women and children under its shade? Its emergence is to be seen as a force to resolve injustice to humanity in all forms. It never allows itself to be feeder of competitive politics to steel the essence of the movement. It is a common space which is apolitical in the usual sense of the term. Its emergence underscores retrieval of basic human values.

However, it never means that political party of any ideological persuasion ceases to express its solidarity and join the resistance movement. Their joining with it may reinforce the movement to intensify. However, there is one caveat here. Since this apolitical forum counts nothing beyond humanitarian values and defies all forms of sectarianism, a political party with its ideological conviction contrary to it will have to face natural disassociation. For, it defeats the logic of solidarity that unifies the people despite the differences that might exist between them and brings humanitarianism as the central guiding force to lead a dignified life. However, confluence may not be uneasy if the ideological conviction of the political party falls in line with humanitarianism that tramples all forms of sectarianism. It may widen the scope for new politics to emerge in the public domain of the country that demands the extermination of injustice meted out to the deprived socially, politically, legally and economically.

Humanitarianism, as an approach, may then find a place for its expression through political action to achieve equity, fraternity and harmony. It is quite likely that it, as the true determinant to ensure a dignified life for all humans, may unmask the political party working in practice against it but projecting as the saviour of humanity. This is what the message of the solidarity movement the state of West Bengal is undergoing now. It has unmasked the ruling party of the state by waging a war against its dehumanizing practices. True, the cry for humanity is echoing now in Bengal. But, who knows if it will echo in the rest of India tomorrow and turn humanitarianism into the dominant ideological (development) plank to save humanity from its peril by way of unmasking the political parties that are working against it in practice? And, by delivering justice to humanity?

(Author: Sunil Ray, Former Director, A.N.Sinha Institute of Social Studies, Patna and professor of Economics at the Institute of Development Studies, Jaipur)