(Representative image)The mere mention of a martyr conjures reverence in our minds for the departed soul. For example, Bhagat Singh is always worthy of our respect and veneration. Martyrs are those who have sacrificed their lives for the nation and its people; calling dead cadres of a party as martyrs is preposterous.
Saying so would attract angry sentiments from some quarters; however, I do not say this with respect to a single party, it applies to all. The current set of 'martyrs' do not sacrifice anything for the nation. They are people who became cannon fodder for the party and its leaders. Creating such people is the objective and strategy of leaders simply because the death of the so-called martyr translates as votes for the party. Rather than dying for an ideology or principle, as was the case with martyrs some time before, modern martyrs are mere preys in street fights.
These transactions of death have to stop. The dead are survived by wives, parents, children and siblings. The money and support that the party collects for the heirs of the dead can in no way match the value of the person who is cut to pieces on the streets for petty political gains.
If we can glean through figures, we can see that leaders are not affected by the violence. How many children of leaders were killed? Has the family of any leader been orphaned? Most of the children of leaders are happily settled in foreign lands in luxurious settings. They inexplicably are able to earn crores with a small, insignificant job. If the secret of such jobs may be mentioned to all, many poor people could make their lives better.
Political parties in the state have started to publicly announce their intent to create companies of goons in the garb of party armies. Will any political leaders allow his/her son or daughter to be part of the team? Someone mentioned in social media that such leaders need to first arm their children to get killed for the party.
That leaders promise protection for the individual and the family of the would-be martyr is a cheap trick to keep a set of suicide fighters ready at the beck and call of the party. Going forward, after a murder, the 'accused' are provided by the party; the police is happy that it does not have to spend time catching the accused. The party then only needs to prove that the 'culprit' was not in the vicinity of the crime and the court would then let them off. That is why many criminals and their proxies get away with small jail terms even after committing serious crimes. This is a game played by the leaders of the victorious and the vanquished.
Political violence is not needed by the state or the society. It is needed only by the leaders. Those who create violent armies and move in the company of guards have to acknowledge their fear of death. The irony is that such cowards urge the young to kill. Such calls, a blatant affront to humanity, only leads to the loss of life, which is not tainted by the color of any flag.
