Click to play videoIt's been a week since Mumbai was taken hostage by daring terrorists. On Wednesday, across the country, Indians came out together in grief, united in rage. From Mumbai to Delhi to Hyderabad to Bangalore, people marched on streets expressing their solidarity with those who suffered and also questioning the decision makers.
In Mumbai, hundreds gathered outside the Gateway of India, candles were lit, placards were flashed and a human chain was formed.
Two hundred people were killed and close to 400 were injured in the terror strike last week.
Since then, SMSs and the Internet have become platforms for citizens to vent their ire - rage against the fact that the political discourse in the country since the terror attacks has gone completely tangential.
The predominant mood at the rallies was anger with people insisting they wanted politicians to action their promises, take the threat of terror seriously and not just try and cling to their seats.
But can citizens protests lead to concrete action on the ground? CNN-IBN debated the question on Face the Nation with a panel comprising Rajya Sabha MP, NCP Supriya Sule; Gerson De Cunha trustee of AGNI and cricket commentator Harsha Bhogle - both of whom participated in the protest marches; and social activist Arvind Kejriwal.
At the beginning of the show 65 per cent said yes, citizens protests lead to concrete action on the ground, while 35 per cent felt otherwise.
A WEEK SINCE 26/11
Harsha Bhogle started the debate by saying that he was unsure whether citizen protests would lead to the change the country was looking for.
"What I saw today was as beautiful as tragedy can allow anything to be. There was a spontaneous outpouring from people, they were out on the streets on their own and no one was coercing them to be there - something which is certainly new for the political establishment. There was a fervour and this time, without religion being involved," he said.
He added that there were policemen present but the crowd was well behaved, no one was jostling and the police force had no trouble at all.
At the end of the day, the idea of a mature democracy is to augment the political class and there seems to be an inherent danger in these spontaneous protests. But did not seem to think that Indians have gone a little overboard in criticising politicians in the country.
"Over a lakh of people collected at the Gateway of India on Wednesday and what united them was a hatred of Indian politics. I don't think that we can go too far in being critical of the political system. There is no going overboard with our criticism of the politician who has let us down tragically and totally," De Cunha said, mincing no words.
INDIA UNITES AGAINST POLITICIANS
Milind Deora told CNN-IBN on Wednesday that for the first time in his life, he was ashamed to be a politician. But despite these strong words, it seems as if the political class of India has no concrete plan to regain the confidence of its citizens.
Supriya Sule said in an attempt to defend the political class that politicians were human beings too.
"I was born and brought up in Mumbai just like Milind and we feel the pain and the anguish of the citizens. We have lost friends, colleagues, people we have known all our lives too. Some have been badly injured," she said.
However - in a parallel attempt to mollify the people of the country - she added, "Let me assure you that we are absolutely saddened by what has happened and I do take moral responsibility for my fraternity. Maybe we have not been good enough and we definitely need to deliver," she added.
She said she had worked with Gerson De Cunha many times in the past and she wanted to assure him and the rest of India that the political class was ready to listen and willing to change.
"I think we owe it to the nation and every citizen. Security is not something that should be thought about after a terror attack. We need to get to the basics of everything - education, health care - and we do not have to wait for a terror attack to spur us into action. We welcome all suggestions and if anybody has a concrete plan, then trust me that we are willing to walk that extra mile to give a better life to the people," she said.
INSENSITIVE POLITICIANS
What seems to have upset India this time is not so much the fact that our politicians are constantly failing to protect the people, but also the fact that they have failed to be sympathetic and sensitive towards a nation that is in mourning.
Supriya Sule said that politicians, at the end of the day, were elected by the people and thus could not afford to be disconnected from the people.
"Whoever is disconnected from the people is not someone who represents the people in any case, I think. I agree that mistakes have been made, but lets take a step forward and unite at this time to make a difference and bring a positive change and show to the world that this is a new beginning," she said.
TECHNOLOGY: A UNIFYING FACTOR
Some weeks ago, US President-elect Barack Obama had said that technology unites people. In India today, people are using technology as a platform to vent their ire against politicians.
Kejriwal said that India has not seen unity on such a large scale in a long time.
"There have been more horrific incidents in the past, but this is the first time that we have seen such large scale protests. The bigger question is whether this is a one off thing incident and whether the people are going to keep at this till something concrete comes our way," he said.
"This outburst that is taking place is spontaneous. There is no leader, no direction and therefore I feel that the media can play a role in channelising this entire anger into something constructive," he added.
Harsha Bhogle agreed saying that he saw a lot of anger spilling out on the streets of Mumbai on Wednesday. "It's my worry that if this anger is not channelised, it may spread hatred again. That would lead to unscrupulous taking advantage, splitting India and then use the split clusters to create votebanks," he said.
At the end of the day, we cannot have a democracy where citizens and politicians are facing off with each other and not working together.
CITIZENS AGAINST TERROR
Terror, in this case, has been a great unifier for India because at the end of the day, there is only one terror and only one victim. The talk on the streets has now reached a level, where people are saying that let there be a non-cooperation movement, a movement where people do not vote.
Gerson De Cunha however said that not voting or not paying taxes was not necessarily a way out of the problem.
"What fills me with hope is that two-thirds of the people who took part in the peace marches across India were youngsters. That is what is going to make the difference," he said.
Supriya Sule added that as a politician, she was happy and proud that these peace marches had happened, as opposed to scared. "I hope we can take this movement forward and that more young, educated people and professionals join the fraternity and make a difference," she stated.
However, she said that at the same time, let's not write off our seniors because experience also counts. "We want India to be a roaring tiger and we want to be part of this development in collaboration with the people."
26/11 A DEFINING POINT?
In an India which is on the cusp of a change, people are hoping that 26/11 really brings the entire country together. However, what is sad is that the entire political class has come together and has as one, criticised the public for these marches. Politicians have even virtually blamed the media for providing a platform to the people to wage protests against the political class.
"Politicians do this for votebanks, which are essentially divisive in character. However, we should still be careful in venting so much ire because at the end of the day, we are still a political democracy. We cannot say that everything that politicians do is wrong because that is, at the end of the day, our only way ahead. Gerson and I would love to have a presidential system where the best men are made ministers, but we cannot do that. As a middle class, we cannot alienate ourselves from the political system," Bhogle stated in an attempt to balance the debate.
Giving a solution, he said that India needed a new political system that either understands this new breed of people or cares to understand. Out of something bad, something good must emerge and who knows, maybe something good will emerge out of this," he added.
Arvind Kejriwal said that it was the media that can make a difference. He wanted to know if CNN-IBN would take the lead and write a letter to all political parties, asking them to make a committment that henceforth they will not give a ticket to criminals. He said that if political parties responded to such a letter, then the people ought to know, but if they didn't, then media houses must ask people not to vote for such people.
There is still at the end of the day, some ray of hope at the end of the dark tunnel and perhaps things can become better. That's why perhaps it is said that even in adversity there could be an opportunity.
FINAL SMS/WEB POLL: Can citizens protests lead to concrete action on the ground?
Yes: 67 per cent
No: 33 per cent
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