Why We Oppose Arvind Kejriwal (Anna Hazare) in JNU
–Students Against Anna Team
[A few days ago, Arvind Kejriwal, leader of the Jan Lokpal movement and also a mentor of some anti-reservation outfits, faced some tough questions from students at JNU when he tried to address a gathering there. As expected, none of the mainstream papers or channels tried to elicit the students’ views, lend space to their voices. The whole event was only barely covered, except for a scattered report or two, like this one in Aaj Tak, the Hindi channel, there was not much else. Obviously, Brahminical media wants to play down any dissent against the casteist ‘India Against Corruption’ led Jan Lokpal movement. In this pamphlet, progressive, anti-caste students from JNU explain their opposition– Round Table India]
• We want a corruption free society but not at the cost of Parliamentary Democracy. Janlokpal bill poses serious challenges to parliamentary democracy, and there is no alternative to parliamentary democracy. If elected leaders are corrupt, they can be held responsible for their actions, as they are answerable to the people who vote for them. On the other hand, Janlokpal is not responsible or answerable to anyone, so how can one guarantee that Janlokpal would not be corrupt? Will the members of Janlokpal come from heaven or will they be angels?
• Since 1990 with the emergence of SC/ST/OBC/Minority politics (Mandal agitation) within the parliament and outside parliament, political power is gradually slipping out of the hands of Brahminical forces. Therefore brahminical media and civil society have started questioning democratic-parliamentary system. This is the real hidden agenda behind defaming parliament by ongoing Janlokpal fiasco.
• What is corruption? Is bribe only corruption? Are Leaders corrupt or did people make them corrupt? Are people not responsible for making leaders corrupt? What about the social, religious, and caste based corruptions? Why Anna Hazare is silent on corporate and NGOs corruption? Why have religious institutions, corporate houses, Media and NGOs not been brought within the ambit of Janlokpal bill?
• Caste is the root of all kinds of corruption so why does Anna Hazare not talk about the root cause of corruption? On the contrary, Anna Hazare supports caste system by saying that “there should be one Chamar, one Lohar and one Sunar in every village”. Even in the Anna Hazare’s model village ‘Ralegaon Siddhi’ caste system exists in oppressive form. And Untouchables are not allowed in public sphere. So Casteist Anna has no legitimacy from 85% people of this country.
• Why there is hue and cry only on corruption and not on other issues of injustice like caste atrocities (worst form of discrimination in the world). A Dalit woman was paraded naked in a village near Anna’s village so why Anna did not say even one word against it? And also the Radical feminists of this campus were silent on Dalit woman issues. Does this feminism of this campus apply to upper caste, upper class women only? Why are Anna (team) and students silent when Dalits are burnt alive? Corruption can be an issue of debate, but not the burning of whole Dalit villages.
• What is the composition of Anna Team, does this team represent all sections of the society? What about the representation of SC/ST/OBC/Minorities in Janlokpal? If this Janlokpal is passed under the pressure of brahminical civil society then don’t you think same civil society will not come with resolution against the SC/ST/OBC reservations? We are sure that next issue is reservation. The so called Civil Society, which does not condemn caste based atrocities, is essentially Uncivil in its nature.
• Indian society has teeth of caste so after Janlokpal, this draconian law will be used for caste discrimination. Where upper caste leaders like Rajeev Gandhi, Lalkrishna Advani, and P. Chidambram, will not be held for their misdeeds, but all SC/ST/OBC leaders irrespective of party lines would be victimized by this law.
• One should not forget that people who are leading this Janlokpal Nautanki, including Arvind Kejriwal, are the same people who some years ago led anti-reservation campaign under the banner of ‘India against Reservation’.
• We want to ask a question to so-called comrades and especially to AISA, that how communist parties’ alliance with bourgeois civil society, RSS is possible..? Pranay Krishan, an AISA ideologue praised this Janlokpal ‘Nautanki’ as India’s biggest movement against imperialism. Also comrade Kavita Krishnan (CPI-ML) tried to speak from their dais but was not allowed to speak (Hindustan Times, 8 June, 2011). So we want to ask them whether they are still with corporate funded (Arvind Kejriwal’s NGO is generously funded by Ford Foundation and Kiran Bedi’s NGO is funded by Coca Cola and Lehman Brothers, Roy, A. “Capitalism:A Ghost Story”, Outlook, March 26, 2012) Janlokpal Toli (Team) or against it, because on 23rd March, in the public talk by Arvind Kejriwal, AISA was conspicuous by their absence.
• March 23, 2012, in Koyna mess, if the public meeting could not be held successfully, then those who were asking questions are not responsible, but it is those who were not them allowing to ask questions who are responsible, raising slogans of Bharatmata ki jai and Bande Matram and making noise and fun all the time. And also there was no proper management and mike (sound system).
~ Forwarded by Anoop Patel, AIBSF.
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Cartoon by Unnamati Syama Sundar.
