INTRODUCTION
Ideologies are perfect, people are not. The reason I call ideologies perfect is that they eventually evolve and adapt. Humans, on the other hand, stopped that activity a long time ago. Probably, ever since they discovered the presence of religion and conquered boundaries and how their own privilege would serve them within that micro-universe.
Not all humans though. Many ideologies have emerged over the years. But the two schools of thought remain the same; left-leaning and right-leaning. While the left school of thought stands for individual happiness and freedom which eventually can go on to create a society of people who are at peace with themselves and with each other, the right school thought works in reverse by teaching people to live as per the rules set in stone, often leading to harsh punishments for those who try to break out of bubble or deviate from a normal course.
DISMANTLING OF IDEOLOGIES
There are four political ideologies. Beyond the simple left-right analysis, liberalism, conservatism, libertarianism, and populism. Individuals across the world embrace each ideology to widely varying extents. The concept of ideology is subject to innumerable interpretations. Since time immemorial, different sorts of ideology have existed. Anarchism, a political ideology that reached the shores of America from 19th century Europe, opposed the centralized government and was more tilted towards favoring the poor and the working class. Anarchism in the United States was connected to the labor movement. On the other hand, Marxism focuses on the struggle between social classes- specifically between the bourgeoisie, or capitalists, and the proletariat, or workers. Marx believed that power relationships between capitalists and workers were inherently exploitative and would inevitably create class conflict. For once, when you set aside your own prejudices, which school of thought appeals to you? The one which guarantees that you live and let live or the one which controls the way you live? Your choice is predominantly influenced by the demographics of your place of residence. If you are a majority controlling nearly every aspect, from schools and industries to lands and ministries, the right school of thought does not affect your privilege. It gives you additional power. Ergo, you either side with it or choose to ignore it because it will never knock on your doors and question your existence. But, it will do so to those who belong to the minority section. Their every sentence, every word would be scrutinized and even misconstrued, to the point that they start living carefully, reluctantly, and even resentfully. But they are not allowed to express it for it will also earn them the label of not being loyal to the country. But loyalty stems from support and affection. It is a two-way street. If the country and its majority do not provide its minority that, is it fair to expect loyalty?
The rise of fascist right across the world is a worrying phenomenon. And a huge reason for this expanse in their ideological territory has happened due to the massive corruption that the left brought along with it. Promises and problems, but hardly ever the solution. This led to people giving a chance to the other school of thought. Unfortunately, they forgot that there is a whole group of people who have their identity embedded in religion and its subsets such as race, caste, and more. They have got the tool to wield their bigotry in full display and are not ready to let go of it easily. They have finally got validation for their hatred against communities and immigrants and they are not strong enough to acknowledge and work on it. They are not strong enough to evolve because their whole life is based upon past scriptures. Scriptures that will never evolve and it is considered a sin to edit them with time, or so they think.
And so, when you give power in the hand of the right, you basically hand over all your rights; to love, to live, to speak. Then, they create a culture of fear and terror, where freedom is attributed to disloyalty. People’s apathy towards fellow humans further strengthens this. It is a slow and poisonous evolution. The fear and insecurity of the majoritarian religion are tapped and capitalized upon to create an atmosphere where the minority is simply grateful to live, thus giving the majority the satisfaction of holding the power. While in reality, we are all pawns in the hands of the politicians. Because when riots happen, the one who kills and the one who gets killed, they are both nameless, only defined by the religious identity. At the end of it, it is nameless destruction incited by those sitting in air-conditioned rooms and formulating hateful policies.
CONCLUSION
At the end of it all, when you are on trial because in the heat of the moment you killed an innocent just because you thought you had the power, none is going to come to your rescue; not your favorite politician, not your prophet, not your God. It will be you against the very system you helped enable. It will be all over you.
Politicians, whether they lean towards the left or towards the right are all the same. Their ultimate aim is to gain power and they prey upon their voters accordingly. They manipulate and lie for votes. They play on the already existing insecurities and channelize the waves in their direction. They do not care about the repercussions. For them, we are all casualties and numbers on a piece of paper. And any of us can be sacrificed for the “greater good”, in the name of love for the country, religion, or whatever they ask for, once they create a fan following.
But we, as citizens, can make a difference, only if we reject being pawns in their hateful game of divisiveness and hatred. But if we are ready to be moulded into hateful bots just because a politician of a certain name or area can sit in the parliament with no accountability, then we are in serious trouble.
Author(s) Name: Navya Dubey (Institute of Law, Nirma University)
