Protest in the modern era has been widely acknowledged all around the globe. Same scenarios are noticeable in other countries of the world especially in South Asian countries like India, Bangladesh and Pakistan. Same scenarios are also noticeable in other South Asian nations and South East Asian nations too.
But there is one glaring difference we evince about the mode of protests in South Asia in comparison with that of countries under European and American continents. In India especially sometimes protest bear fruit but most the cases we find that it becomes terribly awry and detestable. Also we find that as the protests take place during the working hours thereby the expected productivity gets badly hampered.
There are very few instances where the protests bear fruit. The Shahbag movement of Dhaka, Bangladesh, bore tremendous fruit when it was undertaken by students of Dhaka University. Before we introspect deeply about 'Protest' as a subject matter let's find out what actually the term means to us. Thus the term,' Protest' is referred to as a form of protest in words or actions with regard to particular events or situations. Protest takes through public meetings or by way of any action in order to place certain demands for some cause which may benefit the nation or to any individual.
There are various types of protest known to us. Some of them are stated as follow: Street protest: Protest which takes place in streets by different types of organizations with an objective to press for certain demands.
Protest through influence: This is a form of written protest by which we can press or force an individual to withdrawn certain norms which might harm the opponents. Parliamentary protest: This is a type of protest by which opposition parties in the parliament can press for certain policies being tabled on the floor of parliament for the benefit of the nation.
Social protest: This type of protest takes place among friend's circles concerned. Family protest: This type of protest is limited among family circles. Creative protest- This type of protest takes place through creativity by any creative person.
Benefits of protest: It helps to force the management to change the policies of the company. Protest paves the way for betterment of societies. In the parliamentary democracy concerned protest forces the ruling party in the government to withdraw harsh policies for the benefit of the nation as a whole. In the family circle protest helps an individual to regain the lost ground. When any crime takes place in any part of the country protest helps the opponent groups to storm into the limelight thus receiving the support of the nation. Protest reminds the nation against any unethical activities of the people.
So far there were several protests in India recently and as well as previously. Among them we found that some bore fruit whereas did not bear fruit at all. Still as per the system protest still continues all over India. Some when protest gets virulent in India then we also evince sad experience of loss of innocent lives. However from the ethical point of view we evince protests sometimes becomes terrible and violent which ultimately claim huge loss of innocent lives.
Very recently we find that the way Panchkula and Sirsa incidents of Haryana along with some parts of Punjab took place on account of arrest of the founder of Dera Sachcha Soudha took place along with huge loss of innocent lives broadly speaks about virulence as a means of protest instead of resorting to peaceful mode of protests.
This is completely unwarranted as per basic ethics of our society is concerned. But the Shahbag movement of the year 2013 at Dhaka, Bangladesh broadly speaks about the kind of movement which demands that communalism and fanatical elements should be banished completely from Bangladeshi society.
This movement claimed the innocent life of well known progressive personality Rajiv Haider and 60 other progressive personalities, but the logic behind the movement was successful in restoring secularism in that country. Till date despite stray incidents there is always a feeling of oneness among people of different languages and religions existing in that country.
Summing up the above views one point becomes clear in our mind that protest is required but not at the cost of squandering our economy and innocent loss of lives in India and the subcontinent. Most progressive form of protest which we desire is that by street meeting, demonstration during night time and finally sitting across the table with the management of the companies, industrial units of the country as well as senior politicians cum bureaucrats of the country.
The writer is a senior Indian
journalist based in Kolkata
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