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Anurag Kashyap, Konkona Sen Sharma & Others Address Issue Of Lynchings In Open Letter To PM Modi
Many celebrities such as Anurag Kashyap, Konkona Sen Sharma, Shyam Benegal, concerned with the growing number of lynchings in the country, have written an open letter to PM Narendra Modi.
Many celebrities, concerned with the growing number of minorities lynchings in the country, have written an open letter to PM Narendra Modi. The letter dated July 23, has been signed by celebrities from various fields such as Anurag Kashyap, Konkona Sen Sharma, Aparna Sen, Mani Ratnam, Adoor Gopalakrishnan, Shyam Benegal, Soumitra Chatterjee, Riddhi Sen, Ramachandra Guha, and others.
The letter starts off with, "Dear Prime Minister, we as peace loving and proud Indians, are deeply concerned about a number of tragic events that have been happening in recent times in our beloved country," and continues, "Our constitution describes India as a secular socialist democratic republic where citizens of all religion, ethnicities, gender and castes are equal."
Pointing out the hard facts of the issue, it reads, "The lynching of Muslims, Dalits and other minorities must be stopped immediately. We were shocked to learn from the NCRB (National Crime Records Bureau) reports that there have been no less than 840 instances of atrocities against Dalits in the year 2016, and a definite decline in the percentage of convictions. 254 religious identity-based hate crimes were reported between January 1, 2009 and October 29, 2018."
The celebrities expressed regret that not much action has been taken to tackle the issue. "You have criticised such lynchings in Parliament Mr. Prime Minister, but that is not enough! What action has actually been taken against the perpetrators? We strongly feel that suck offences should be declared non-bailable, and that exemplary punishment should be meted out swiftly."
The letter further reads, "Regrettably "Jai Shri Ram" has become a provocative 'war cry' today that leads to law and order problems, and many lynchings take place in its name. It is shocking that so much violence should be penetrated in the name of religion. There is no democracy without dissent. People should not be branded 'anti-national' or 'urban Naxal' and incarcerated because of dissent against the government."
"Criticising the ruling party does not imply criticising the nation. No ruling party is synonymous with the country where it is in power. It is only one of the political parties of that country. Hence anti-government stands cannot be equated with anti-national sentiments. An open environment where dissent is not crushed only makes for a stronger nation," it continues, and concludes with, "We hope our suggestions will be taken in the spirit that they are meant -- as Indians genuinely concerned with, and anxious about, the fate of our nation."
