A Nation Falling for the Lure of Majoritarianism

Over the past few years, social media's invasive power has become evident in our lives

- SHASHI SHEKHAR

Years ago, I read Kitne Pakistan, a novel by Hindi writer Kamleshwar that articulates the fractious, discriminatory and power-hungry tendencies of Indian society. The exodus from Murshidabad following riots in the wake of the passage of the Waqf Amendment Act has again forced us to ponder whether we can ever bridge this mindset of separation. Do we really want to replace the rule of the majority with majoritarianism?

The riots in Murshidabad have made the lives of Hindus, who are a minority there, miserable. Hriday Das, a tea-stall owner, and his daughter-in-law Sucharita Sarkar from Jafrabad were shaking with fear as they narrated their ordeal to Hindustan's correspondent who met them at Rajmahal on the Jharkhand-West Bengal border. They said, on 12 April, an armed group attacked people in their locality where about 170 Dalit families resided. The group stoned houses they found locked. Das was home when the attacks began. He said stones kept raining on his terrace, and he could hear people getting beaten up outside. His brother Hargobind and nephew Chandan were caught by the group that beat them up. Das also learnt later that his shop had been vandalized.

The rioters left the place after issuing a warning that anyone who returned would be wiped out. "We'll see who in the administration has the guts to come and save you," they said.