‘Identity and Violence’ might have been written with some purpose. It may be serious effort of a Nobel laureate Amratya Sen to write for Indian reader. Last year he came out with ‘Argumentative Indians’. This year he writes ‘Identity and Violence’. It may help in some way to make some identity to poor and downtrodden in this country. India is an excellence starved nation of 110 million. Still it is so difficult to make an identity. Everyday, every month and every year, some new identity is created and get lost in wilderness. The identity may be good for those who have them. Identity may be good for those whose ancestors have struggled hard to create them. Identity may be important for those who were born lucky in the privileged family and rich society. Identity may be good for few. Identity may be good to be resolved to avoid the clash among the underprivileged. Search of identity may be the quest of few privileged one. But just see the other side of the coin.In India, 80 percent of the population born backward, schedule caste, schedule tribes and so on. They are born backward. They live backward. They die backward. It never changes their identity even if they may become doctor, engineer, lawyer, journalists, executives or any other high profile appointments including Ministers or President or any such thing. They remain backward. They are forced to live this life with that tag. Why only identity tag, I feel they live like a backward. They live a miserable life.
Why talk about the caste system of India? A person born in developing country remains developing even if he or she goes around the globe. Every other guy treats her like developing. They remain in this life with that tag. They remain developing. The person born in the developed nation has all the privilege. They have the courage and opportunity to write about the clash of civilization. They write about the clash of identity. They remain developed and enjoy all those privileged God has created most probably for them.
Think of the guys who are born Muslim. They are forced to live life reading Quran. They spend and waste most of their time in going to Mosque. They spend most of their energy and spirit in praising Allah. They are forced to feel pleasure in visiting Mecca. They are forced to live like a miserable life. They are forced to live life without basic amenities. They are forced to live life with the item and equipment invented by developed world. They are forced to use laptop and software developed by developed people. They are forced to live life in following only. They can never become the part of innovation. Their innovation ends with defining Jihad, Freedom, Allah, and Burqua. The ladies pass their secluded and free life within the four walls of Burqua. They can not take any major decisions. They are all born Muslim. They live Muslim. They die Muslim. They can never think of changing their identity. They live and die with their identity crisis.
Life starts and ends with specific poor identity. Life ends with backward identity. Life ends with developing identity. Life ends with Muslim identity. Life ends with forward identity. Life passes with those identity poor are born with. They pass their whole life maintaining those identities. Where there is chance to enjoy the identity. There is no crisis. There is no importance. Identity is a unnecessarily forced personality of individual. In this modern world, people of the 21st century want to take birth without any identity. They want to create their own identity. They want to live their own identity. Please do not stamp them with backward, forward, Muslim, schedule caste, schedule tribes, developing or developed or any such thing. They want to be the citizen of 21st century. They want to enjoy the life and privilege of the humanity of this era. Everybody born on this wants to enjoy a free human life. No body wants to born as female in Afghanistan. If choice given, everybody wants to take birth as a citizen of developed nation with all those freedom.
India is a country of Khandan and Gharanas. Every successful person belongs to some big Khandan or famous Gharanas. The identity of individuals is based on their Khandan and Gharanas. The person may belong to any field. The few famous names could be Kapoor Khandan and Khans’ in Bollywood, Gandhi and Nehru in politics, Tata and Birlas in business, Jaipur Khandan and Lucknow Gharanas in dance and music, south Indian as scientists, Bengalis as diplomats, Gujaratis as merchants, Sardars as hard workers and so on and so forth. After independence, especially the change of initial Congress Government after Emergency during 1979, things started changing fast. The changes taking place in India and across the world, America or Europe, gives me hope that a person could provide some input to humanity without belonging to Khandans or Gharanas. In that sense, I started getting entirely new feelings that I originate from yahoo.com Khandans amidst other Khandans like hotmail.com or rediffmail.com. And I belong to yahoo Gharanas. I am grateful to my new Khandan and Gharana. Can we ever recognize and search our identity based on our knowledge, experience, education, and connectivity. In this networked world, does identity has any other meaning? Can we go little more global away from our regional feeling, caste feelings and biased religious attitudes? Can we unlearn our old trivial and selfish identity?
Forget about identity. The famous economist is writing on history. Is somebody else taking advantages of his popularity? It is little irony from my thinking. Why does not he address poverty? Why does not he talk about how to improve the life of poor and underprivileged? Why does not he talk about how to improve the life of Muslim communities? Why does not he talk about how to improve the situation of women in this world? Why he does not talk about what he is famous for? He must pick up some serious issues. He must discuss why India lacks in Millennium poverty elevation program. Like Jeffery Sach, he also should come out with ‘End of Poverty’. He must address why India are unable to shine in the world competitive environment. He must address the issues which help us to become develop at least by 2020. When President and Prime Minister of this country are talking about India becoming developed, he also should talk about this and set some yardsticks. Will he be able to do? During the launch of the book at India Habitat Center, when I raised the question of identity, he agreed with me to have something like yahoo.com or hotmail.com but when is he going to spread this for whole humanity? People must address the issues which are required for humanity at large. Can we concentrate on some better issues?
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