In this episode of 'Editorial', Mr. Sujit Nair discusses Rekha Patra, who was hailed as "Shakti Swaroopa" by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Mr. Nair highlights the disparity in treatment between the victims of the Sandeshkhali incident, where women were reportedly sexually harassed by TMC workers, and the women who suffered similar atrocities in Manipur. He points out the political hypocrisy, noting that politicians tend to remain silent when crimes occur in their home state but shift focus to incidents in states governed by opposition parties.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
[00:00:02] Hello and welcome to HW Editorial with me Sujit Nair.
[00:00:07] Here you can listen to my views, my analysis.
[00:00:10] Follow this podcast to stay updated.
[00:00:12] At HW News, we have been delivering news that matters to you.
[00:00:17] Our goal is to present you with information that stimulates conversations around topic of larger public importance
[00:00:23] that often gets lost in prime time shows.
[00:00:41] Namaskar. Welcome to another episode of Editorial.
[00:00:46] The Prime Minister of India calls Rekha Patra, the protestor in Sandesh Kali case,
[00:00:54] if you remember and who is currently the candidate for Bharatiya Janata Party from West Bengal.
[00:01:00] The Prime Minister calls her Shakti Swaroopa.
[00:01:04] He says she is the Swaroop, she is the form of Shakti.
[00:01:10] Okay, good.
[00:01:12] Also Yamini Ayer who used to be the head of centre of policy research, she quit.
[00:01:20] You know why she quit? Because she said something just not so favourable to the government.
[00:01:26] I am going to discuss these two issues. These two issues are connected and connected because I am going to talk about morality.
[00:01:33] I am going to talk about ethics in politics. I am going to talk about freedom of speech in politics.
[00:01:40] And I am going to talk about greed in politics. That is my topic tonight. Let's get right to the show.
[00:01:49] Now, Rekha Patra was a protestor in Sandesh Kali case which is very nice.
[00:01:57] Now she went on to say that I am the unfortunate woman from Sandesh Kali, not only Sandesh Kali but the woman from the entire Bashi Rat area which faced atrocities.
[00:02:09] Calprits have been arrested and we want them punished. We want to cast our votes in an environment of safety.
[00:02:18] We want all the mothers and sisters of Sandesh Kali to be allowed to freely cast their vote. This is what Ms Patra said and so correct.
[00:02:28] So correct. To which the Prime Minister said that you are going to carry out an important responsibility.
[00:02:36] I am sure your words will raise the election commission which will make arrangements for free and fair polls.
[00:02:43] I hope the election commission understands your pain that you have not voted since 2011.
[00:02:49] The Prime Minister added that you have raised the issue of women of Sandesh Kali before the entire country.
[00:02:56] You have sent a very powerful person in jail. I see your courage. You have great confidence.
[00:03:02] You are Shakti Swarupa. I am sure you will win and reach Delhi. That is the parliament.
[00:03:11] All of this is good. But you know the problem that I see with politicians is I wonder why this same statement was not used in Manipur.
[00:03:23] There were a lot of women who cried, who wept, who asked for justice, who begged for justice.
[00:03:32] Two women were paraded naked. Other than supporting those women, a lot of these same administrators and politicians
[00:03:42] was trying to criticize as to who video recorded them, who recorded that women being paraded.
[00:03:49] At that point in time, one didn't feel like picking up a protester, supporting that protester, calling that protester as Shakti Swarupa.
[00:03:59] Ensuring that protester is given powers, empowered, bought to Delhi, made MP, MLA, whatever.
[00:04:07] It only happens in West Bengal. Isn't that strange?
[00:04:12] Now let me tell you. I am not just talking about Bharatiya Janata Party and Narendra Modi.
[00:04:18] I am also talking about a person, a gentleman called Derek O'Brien who stood there and shouted at the top of his voice
[00:04:26] when it came to Manipur. Good! Good! But where was that voice when it came to Sandesh Kali?
[00:04:33] Why didn't he stand and protest and ask his own government why the hell has this happened and how did we even allow this to happen?
[00:04:42] Are we saying that the police was not aware of this?
[00:04:45] Are we saying that the law enforcement in that place was absolutely oblivious of all this?
[00:04:52] The administration was oblivious of all this?
[00:04:55] If they were, then why? Why weren't this question asked?
[00:05:00] Why weren't these questions asked by Derek O'Brien who shouted, who possibly I think was also disbarred, disqualified or whatever, suspended?
[00:05:10] What about Mamma Muitra? Why wasn't she asking no questions? Why was she quiet?
[00:05:17] So the fact is, our atrocities are climbing against women, are climbing against humanity? Subjective to which political spectrum you stand?
[00:05:29] In our political spectrum, in our state, then it's fine.
[00:05:36] In the other state, then we stand, shout, we talk, constitution, constitution, constitution.
[00:05:42] When it happens in the wrong state, nothing.
[00:05:45] And when it happens in somebody else's state, everybody says, Shakti Sarupa to the protesters which is good.
[00:05:52] But when it happens in a BJP government state, nothing.
[00:05:58] No Shakti Sarupa there. Isn't that strange?
[00:06:03] And by the way, there was this Congress spokesperson, Supriya Srinath, who put up a very weird and very unbecoming tweet or whatever that's called X.
[00:06:19] And later on she said, listen I didn't do it, somebody else did it, somebody managed my accounts and somebody else did it.
[00:06:26] So somebody else managed your account which means you allow such people to manage your accounts?
[00:06:30] You see, if something happens out of HW, I am responsible.
[00:06:34] If something happens out of my Twitter, unless and until I go prove it with the cops that it is not me, somebody else hacked into my account and somebody else you broke into my password and then used my account.
[00:06:44] Which means that if somebody of my people have done it, I am responsible for it because I appointed that person to do it thinking that that person thinks right.
[00:06:53] And if that person didn't, then it is my fault.
[00:06:57] And why did Raul Gandhi and others keep quiet about it?
[00:07:02] I mean you are talking about a woman, you are humiliating a woman because she is from the opposition party, you are humiliating a woman. Is that fair?
[00:07:12] My party is okay, because if it is with the other party then it is morally wrong baba, very wrong.
[00:07:19] Is that how it works? Is that how cheap morality is now?
[00:07:25] That's my first question that I want to raise.
[00:07:29] Now let's come to my next question.
[00:07:32] You see there is a lady called Yamini Aayir, she is the chief of center of policy research.
[00:07:38] These are people who are professionals.
[00:07:41] These are people who opine based on their data, on their findings and their information and their understanding.
[00:07:48] They are the people who in a way directs countries, directs our policies.
[00:07:54] They sit at their level.
[00:07:57] They have that information, they have that education, they have that qualification and they have that understanding and that is why they sit in that level.
[00:08:07] Good managers use their advice whether it is positive or whether it is negative for their own benefit.
[00:08:17] So when they say something is wrong, something is wrong.
[00:08:21] Other than bouncing on them one tries to correct what they said is wrong or one tries to go and learn from these people as to baba why did you say it is wrong?
[00:08:32] What can I do to correct it?
[00:08:34] That's how good governance and fair governance is and that's how that's what the definition of democratic governance is.
[00:08:43] Now what has happened here is this lady, Ms Aayir, she on 23rd of March published an article in the economic.
[00:08:54] The article was a dark shadow of creeping authoritarianism looms over India as it prepares for its 18th election.
[00:09:03] This was the title of the article.
[00:09:05] Starting May, boom.
[00:09:08] The article itself was not so favorable for Modi.
[00:09:11] She went on to write that his governance, that is Modi's governance build on aggressive centralization legitimized by a cult personality and undergranted by an exclusionary Hindu nationalist ideology is eroding the country's democracy.
[00:09:30] This is what she wrote.
[00:09:31] She wrote her opinion.
[00:09:33] This is what she felt. That is what she wrote.
[00:09:35] Now this article was published on the 23rd of March, 23rd of March and on the 26th of March Ms Aayir resigned.
[00:09:46] She stepped down.
[00:09:48] Now is this mere coincidence that she wrote an article which was not so favorable to the government and then she resigned in three days or was there some pressure?
[00:09:58] It's something that you decide.
[00:10:01] Now in the meanwhile it will be very interesting for me to just add on here that the chief economic advisor today makes a statement Mr Nageshwaran makes a statement that government can't solve all social economic problems such as unemployment.
[00:10:18] Every problem we can solve, all unemployment problem and all we can't solve.
[00:10:23] This is the kind of statement that I guess the government is used to expecting.
[00:10:28] My question, my final question and my conclusion is as follows.
[00:10:35] Where is our politics leading? Where are we going? Where are we going with this? Where is our political morality?
[00:10:42] A rape case, a assault, a sexual assault is treated differently based on their political environment.
[00:10:51] A bridge bush and Sharon Singh was accused of sexual harassment treated differently.
[00:10:57] Young girls protested then too.
[00:11:00] Why were those young wrestlers, those young girls, why were they not called Shakti Swarupa?
[00:11:06] When a person, a convict or rapist like that Ram Rain Singh, given a bail every second day to enjoy his birthday party different.
[00:11:18] So what exactly is our morality? Where do we stand as far as sexual offences are concerned? Are we okay with that?
[00:11:25] Are we okay with that till such time it is not belonging to our party baba, till such time it is not happening in our party state, area where our party is governing.
[00:11:36] If it happens where our party is governing nothing wrong but if it happens where the opposition is governing then to baba pray.
[00:11:43] Is that how it is? Is that how our relevance is for sexual assault? Number one, number two, is where is this concept of ethics?
[00:11:53] Where is this concept of democracy?
[00:11:56] If anybody says our economy is not good throw him out.
[00:11:59] If anybody says that this is not how election commission should be run make him resign.
[00:12:02] If anybody says that this is wrong what you are doing is wrong throw him out, sack him.
[00:12:08] If any journalist come and say that what you guys are doing is wrong raid him. Is that what it is?
[00:12:16] If this is not authoritarian what is?
[00:12:18] And finally and finally what governments are we talking about? Money governments?
[00:12:27] Taking money left right and center from whoever is giving it to you without knowing without nobody knowing about it.
[00:12:33] No names should be disclosed, no address should be disclosed nothing thanks to supreme court we got to know.
[00:12:40] Look at what happened in electoral bonds look at the way that electoral bonds was designed it was designed to ensure that political party emasses money.
[00:12:50] So where is the credibility? Who is talking about credibility? Who has the credibility to govern this country?
[00:12:58] What are you talking about at which on which high pedestal are you standing and pointing fingers at others?
[00:13:07] I ask every political party here this is what our politics has relegated to.
[00:13:13] So that's what I wanted to take you through next time when you hear these politicians whichever part of the political spectrum you belong to when you hear these politicians please question them.
[00:13:26] Please question them don't take everything for granted don't take everything on face value because honestly speaking nothing is on face value.
[00:13:37] Most of our politicians can act better than our actors trust me till I see you next time.
[00:13:45] Stay ahead with our cutting edge news app.
[00:13:49] Instantly access the latest shorts in just one minute and breaking news in just 50 words.
[00:13:54] Download now for a smarter faster news experience.
[00:14:24] This is the best W news podcast we are sure you will love it too.