On November 9, we reached a tide in the affairs of our nation that, to paraphrase Shakespeare, if taken at the flood, could lead us to peace and prosperity but omitted, could continue to bind us in the shallows of our past miseries. On that day, with its verdict on the 70-year-old Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid case, the Supreme Court brought closure to one of the darkest chapters in the history of independent India. Few disputes had divided the country as starkly on religious lines as this one. The poisonous brew of politics and religion tore our nation asunder for decades and pushed us to the edge of the precipice. No internal communal conflict claimed as many innocent lives—2,000 at last count—as the conflagration over the Ram temple did, spawning a retaliatory bloodlust and opening our flanks to a hostile western neighbour to stoke the flames of communal antagonism.
The Supreme Court verdict is an opportunity for us to step back from the brink. The highest court of the land rightly sensed a greater virtue in clarity and decisiveness as it str ove to find a rare unanimity and supreme balance. The logic with which the five learned justices arrived at the same conclusion will continue to be hotly debated. Many will question whether the judges allowed faith to trump jurisprudence. And whether they took a majoritarian view by ignoring facts and evidence that had been acknowledged in the course of the hearings. But even in the heat of the argument, it must be proudly acknowledged that the judgment emerged from a close adherence to due process and was based on evide nce that ran into thousands of pages, meticulously pieced together over several decades and with fair hearings to all concerned. And that the tone and tenor of the judgment was a clear signal and appeal to everyone as a nation to collectively move on.
Denne historien er fra November 25, 2019-utgaven av India Today.
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Denne historien er fra November 25, 2019-utgaven av India Today.
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Killer Stress
Unhealthy work practices in Indian companies are taking a toll on employees, triggering health issues and sometimes even death
Shuttle Star
Ashwini Ponnappa was the only Indian to compete in the inaugural edition of BDMNTN-XL, a new international badminton tourney with a new format, held in Indonesia
There's No Planet B
All Living Things-Environmental Film Festival (ALT EFF) returns with 72 films to be screened across multiple locations from Nov. 22 to Dec. 8
AMPED UP AND UNPLUGGED
THE MAHINDRA INDEPENDENCE ROCK FESTIVAL PROMISES AN INTERESTING LINE-UP OF OLD AND NEW ACTS, CEMENTING ITS REPUTATION AS THE 'WOODSTOCK OF INDIA'
A Musical Marriage
Faezeh Jalali has returned to the Prithvi Theatre Festival with Runaway Brides, a hilarious musical about Indian weddings
THE PRICE OF FREEDOM
Nikhil Advani’s adaptation of Freedom at Midnight details our tumultuous transition to an independent nation
Family Saga
RAMONA SEN's The Lady on the Horse doesn't lose its pace while narrating the story of five generations of a family in Calcutta
THE ETERNAL MOTHER
Prayaag Akbar's new novel delves into the complexities of contemporary India
TURNING A NEW LEAF
Since the turn of the century, we have lost hundreds of thousands of trees. Many had stood for centuries, weathering storms, wars, droughts and famines.
INDIA'S BEATING GREEN HEART
Ramachandra Guha's new book-Speaking with Nature-is a chronicle of homegrown environmentalism that speaks to the world
