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DREAMS have a strange way of turning sour. It is apparent that there are today far fewer takers of the dream of achchey din that was so successfully sold in the 2014 general elections. In part this can be traced to the ‘failure’ of the government to generate higher growth and, more importantly, worthwhile employment for the millions joining the workforce every year. The greater fear and apprehension, however, is about the possible breakdown of social peace; a growing climate of into-lerance, bigotry and hatred towards those designated as the social ‘other’; and the brazenness with which organized groups are willing to use ‘all means’ to impose their preferred social vision and norms, confident that they enjoy both social and official sanction.

At the moment it may be the Dadri lynching, ostensibly triggered by allegations of cow slaughter and beef consumption, that is dominating media discussion. But Dadri is only the latest, and by no means the last, in a series of gruesome incidents that have marked our civic life, including the killing of well known rationalists and writers. And while it would be unfair, and factually incorrect, to trace all this to only the regime in power, it does appear that not only has the scale and intensity of such incidents increased, the institutional response to these acts of constitutional impropriety and vandalism has weakened. Never before have so many senior politicians, parliamentarians and ministers, rushed to ‘explain away/justify’ the actions, defend the perpetrators (while insisting that the law will take its own course), and divert blame to opposition parties if not the victims.

It is, of course, possible to diminish, if not dismiss, the current outpouring of concern as ‘manufactured hysteria’ of interested parties – the English speaking, ‘secular’ intelligentsia unable to come to terms with its displacement by a ‘more organic, provincial elite, rooted in the religious and cultural ethos of our ancient civilization’. We are also told that what we are witnessing, and experiencing, is nothing but a playing out of a longer historical process of an anti-colonial struggle and freedom movement seeking to define and institutionalize the norms needed for a democratic, constitutional republic to enable harmonious living in a multi-cultural and multi-religious society – a process that is particularly vexed in an ancient land leavened with long memories and deep animosities.

Unfortunately, our record of ‘holding to account’ those responsible of vitiating social peace is less than exemplary. Worse, our social and political leaders, expected to uphold and deepen the norms enshrined in the Constitution, exceptions apart, seem to have a rather shallow and instrumental faith in these ideals. No wonder that no regime, across ideological divides, can claim higher moral and constitutional standards. Hardly surprising that so many of our public intellectuals come across as timid and self-serving, keener to be on the right side of the rulers than to hold them to account. That is why the public protest by so many of our public intellectuals, upset at the inaction and worse of our leaders, needs to be welcomed.

And before one is subjected to the usual tirade about the whining of the English language elite, out of touch with the realities of the land, one may point out that the protesters are from different language traditions, of different ages and sensibilities. Whatever their differences with each other, and there are many, or whatever their individual predilections and affiliations, what unites them is a rejection of the current climate of intolerance which undermines the very possibility of creative production.

One should also not be distracted by questions such as, why now and not earlier, why on this issue and not another, and so on. Creative artists are not social activists or politicians, expected to respond to every public provocation, and also maintain consistency. As individuals, different people respond to different stimuli and in different styles, not always to do with self-interest. Some of this may take a more public form – returning awards, sitting on dharna, and so on; others may chose to reflect their concern through their artistic work. This does not make one mode of protest superior and ranking them – individuals and their actions – is unfair.

Of course, the current protest is political – in societal, not party political terms. It is an attempt, no mater how weak and inchoate, to force a course correction on our ruling establishment. And yes, it does embarrass the prime minister. Narendra Modi may be a lifelong pracharak and a loyal member of the BJP. He is also a constitutional functionary, expected to both uphold and deepen the constitutive ideals of our constitutional republic. In failing to recognize and practice the dharma of his constitutional role and in not using his considerable authority and prestige to rein in the troublemakers, Narendra Modi has disappointed us all.

Harsh Sethi