Freedom of Expression and Events at JNU

How could you say such a thing? It’ wrong.

What you said is highly offensive. I object strongly.

I’d think twice before saying such a thing? Take Care

How dare you say something like that? Watch your words

Say that again and I will show you?

Once more word and I will kick your ass.

If you want to live, shut your mouth.
I will destroy you if you say that.

I will leave it to the reader to judge the above statements. I will also leave it to the reader to consider how he or she would feel if these were directed towards you? Would you let it pass? Would you take it seriously? Would you consider taking measures to protect yourself?

Freedom of expression quite easily the most important tenet of a democracy, this includes the right to opine, to criticize, to offend, to ridicule, to satirize and even to insult anything under the sun including the state, the government, religion, public figures, the formidable fourth estate and even the almighty (if he exists). 

“I may disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it.” This is a quote that is often attributed to Voltaire and is the essence of freedom of expression. It is not about taste, it is not about appropriateness, it is instead about openness. Many people use the word 'tolerance' which give the impression that we have to put up with diverse ideas. But this is much more than tolerance, it is instead a celebration of diversity of ideas. There will never be a consensus on every idea. Some may object, some may complain and some may whine. But it is this variety of ideas that facilitates engaging discussion and debate. In fact, denying an individual his right to express is denying yourself the right to be exposed to it. Because freedom of expression emanates from freedom of thought and it is often these thoughts that have led to progress in society. All the great inventions, works of art and discoveries were possible because someone dared to be different and more importantly dared to express this difference of opinion without fear. If we become a society that sticks to convention we stop growing. One of the major reasons that dictatorial and communist regimes were toppled was it proclivity to repress freedom of expression.

While almost everything in the world needs to be moderated, it is freedom of expression that we must guard from being moderated. Because moderation means the need for a moderator, that will lead to human subjectivity and eventual bias sometimes consciously and sometimes subconsciously. It is therefore vital that in a country such as ours i.e. the largest democracy in the world, there is absolute and unmitigated freedom of expression.

One of the places where it is essential that freedom of expression be practiced and promoted is our educational institutes. It is vital that we teach our students to think and express freely. They must be encouraged to question the status quo and have healthy debates.

So now let’s look at the recent events at Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) that has hit the headlines. Last Tuesday around ninety students from the DSU (Democratic Students Union is a far left group) held a meeting with a purpose to protest the ‘judicial killing’ of Afzal Guru. Guru is a terrorist who plotted the the attack on the India Parliament House and was executed after due process of law. Then there was another group that screamed “Bharat ki barbaadi tak, jung rahegi, jung rahegi!” and other slogans calling for the destruction of India. 

Take a look at this video, that calls for war against India for freedom of Kashmir

So should these ‘students’ be allowed to conduct themselves in such a fashion? Of course they should, this is a question of their freedom of expression. We do not have the right to stop them. What is also true is that we are living in dangerous times, with the threat of terrorism perennially looming over. Just as every individual has a right to express himself, every individual has a right to defend himself. If confronted by the threat of destruction or violence, an individual is within his rights to take measures of precautions, these measures could be defensive of offensive. It is said that assassination is the worst form of censorship. Hence allowing one self to perish means the perishing of ideas that are within you and again we come to the all-important issue of freedom of expression.

The same attitude must be taken towards this group of sloganeers. When somebody calls for the destruction of India and lauds a terrorist mastermind, the state has a duty to take it seriously and investigate all the perpetrators to evaluate if the threat is valid. The government is therefore fully within its right to question all those involved and conduct a thorough investigation to establish the truth. As always they must be presumed innocent until proven guilty. It is possible that impressionable mind are being used as a tool. It is also possible that something more sinister is afoot hence it is important to get core of this issue and find who is behind this.

But looking at this disturbing trend, there is no denying that there is a concerted effort to unleash chaos in campuses. First it was the FTII, then it was Hyderabad University and now it is the JNU, there have also been incidences of a similar kind in West Bengal and Pune. If left unchecked this could devolve into something very serious. But the goal is clear: to derail the narrative of a developing India under PM Modi and propagate the impression that civil liberties are under siege and a crisis is emerging.

It is these sort minds that had concocted the bogus ‘Intolerance’ narrative. The usual suspects that includes some members of the news media, the Congress Party (it doesn’t matter that Afzal Guru was executed during their tenure) and the Aam Aadmi Party are once again pushing the narrative of an ‘emergency like’ climate. 

It is also very important to not paint the entire university with the same broad strokes. JNU is a vast university where a great deal of good work such as research is done. We cannot allow a few to malign the reputation of the entire university.

The government clearly lost the perception battle with respect to the church attacks during the early part of their tenure and the entire issue of ‘intolerance’ and the events surrounding the killing in Dadri prior to the Bihar elections. It is therefore essential that the government react in a robust fashion. Since students are involved it has to be as sensitive as it is aggressive, perhaps there is a need for counselling as well. It is also essential that these event be not used to muzzle free speech.

Doubtlessly there must be tough action against those who use the shoulders of the young and impressionable to fire their rifles of poison. It calls for engaging with students directly. During his campaign for PM Narendra Modi had spoken to them directly and it had worked remarkably creating the Modi Wave of 2014. It can quite easily be done again, but it needs to be done fast. Else the forces of Break India may manage to outwit the forces behind Make In India.