As some, I mean even if it's few, it's a hopeful situation, amongst us are totally disgusted by the recent rise of aggressive nationalism in the country, it's important to explore the nature of language use especially the choice of words.
Antinational and the trajectory of pro-nationals
There seems to be a recent rise of thin skinned people looking for antinationals to be annihilated. They are proudly making claims of nationalism as a way of life. The nationalism that makes them undermine the constitutional guarantee of free speech and ability to criticise nation and it's policies. Initially, you thought you could ignore them because they are uneducated and insensitive. Then you thought there will be administration to save you from such stupid gangs. Finally you realise that you are quite lonely here and not even the administration is that active to save you from those pack of goons.
They have a peculiar mode of operation that make everyone vulnerable. First they find out people having a slight difference of opinion. It's easy to find them online, because now a day people make it sure that they have an opinion and they make it sure that that opinion is expressed online. There is nothing wrong in it, but since one has the right to share his/her opinion opposite opinions are also available in the market.
With the Pulwama issue hurting million's of people's sentiments, it's relatively easy to pump the flow of aggressive nationalism and carry away people's consciousness towards and singular and monolithic construct of nationalism. A nationalism that rests on hatred against a country- The Pakistan. A nationalism that quickly alienates one of our own provinces - Kashmir. A nationalism that promotes stereotypes of equating Muslims with Pakistan and henceforth terrorism.
Who are the pro-nationals?
Pro-nationals are now having several categories.
First, it's the people who accept the state as a monolithic structure and a machine that works beyond criticism. They also find it disturbing to criticise the state policies when so many Central Reserve Police Force personnel were killed.
Therefore, if someone has a slightest doubt in mind about the lack of security arrangements s/he bound to be an antinational.
Second, it's the people who subscribe to the hoaxes served hot in their WhatsApp Facebook tables everyday by some ITcell army of a particular political party with particular agenda in mind- such as anti-Muslim propaganda and sustenance of present regime. Their survival depends on the sustenance of the regime hence it is an ecosystem in itself.
Third, it's the people who suddenly find it's important to compete with others to show who is more Nationalist. Hence, all of a sudden some shopkeeprs are displaying the boards that they will not let people of Kashmir to enter. Or a stupid, insanely hoax looking message of some Cornel asking everyone to abandone Kashmir or kashmiri products- opportunists even from the highest constitutional positions even tweeted it.
Fourth, it's the people who are not only unemployed but also unemployable. This particular section subscribe to the fact that the country is female, and only test of patriotism is enchantment of Bharat Mata ki Jay. These section is the most dangerous one and behaves like a pact animal roarming around freely and targetting people online and offline. This section seems to be the most conspicuous one as well.
The mode of operation-
It's rather simple. They identify people making posts online. Like a school going girl said that even when people are killed on the opposite side of the border it's painful, or a school teacher arguing the technicalities of martyrdom. These people are isolated and vulnerable. Hence, initially they search for the profiles online, take screenshots and make the screenshots available to their instruments.
Once the screenshots get sufficient attention by the specialists who usually add one or two more lines describing how heinious the crime has been made by a Facebook post it is usually released online in common and large groups. These large groups are also filled with fake profiles and because they constantly harp on the issue many others participate with the same sentiment.
As a last step to the process locally available pact full of unemployed and unemployable goons launch attack on the property and the person.
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| Taken from sanchari sengupta's Facebook page |
The language use-
Let me introduce you to the nature of language who usually find the country to be thier mother.
A lady was asked about the size of her vagina and how many penises she can take inside simultaneously. She has also been asked who is going to save her if she gets a gang rape on a famous alleyway of a famous mosque in Kolkata. Apart from these, slangs like being a characterless lady, or being an unlawful child etc. are quite regular. For men it's the question of his character or whether he will enjoy seeing their female family members getting raped!
Some of them carry national flag and hence if one questions the intent of the national flag s/he is immediately a branded antinational even by those who are apparently educated and occupying respected position in the society and in occupation.
While these goons are unleashed, their videos are circulated widely and a large section of the people appreciate the move in the name of killing "Pakistani" people living inside the country. When questioned they give a strange definition of democracy as the rule of the majority. They find the cultivation of such sentiments are absolutely needed and important because their country is otherwise in grave crisis.
Where does it end?
One cannot see the end immediately. Some people will bag electoral dividends from it and meanwhile the country will step backwards to a relatively much more darker times of prehistoric era when civilisation was rooted in sentiments coming out of killing (sometimes cooking and eating too) of fellow members of the same species in the name of apparent cultural differences
Eloquently expressed. Logical and empirical
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