Have we been reduced to a banana republic or a country which is inclined to go back to the days when civilisations dwelt in forest? The macabre killing of Ankita Singh in Dumka, Jharkhand on 29th of August, 2022; by the boy next door, Sharukh Hussain, by drenching her with petrol and setting her ablaze, is not a Hindu-Muslim religious issue, but it encompasses the graver issue of humanity under the palpable threat of social catastrophe afflicting it in its octopus like grip.
Vivekanand Jha Ranchi: As it has become the institutionalised trend in contemporary times, even before the funeral pyre of the victim falling casualty to the deadliest of cruelty exhibited– drenching the young woman with petrol and setting her ablaze, on 28th of August in Dumka, Jharkhand, — had extinguished, the most unfortunate war of words, political whataboutery has already kick -started to drawn the relevance of issue to the back burner, as the communal twist and orientation given to the whole episode to extract the milleages out of the human tragedy of cataclysmic proportion. Ankita Singh, an adolescent, pursuing her studies in standard twelve, had the guts to put her foot down to the advances made by the boy next door, Sharukh Hussain, innocently oblivious of the deadly consequences that her spurning would bring in its wake. Worse still, the young girl could never ever have remotely imagined that, how her macabre death, barely even before the funeral pyres were extinguished, would fall casualty to the whataboutery of different political parties seeking to extract maximum political mileages as they could out of the catastrophic human tragedy which could make the human spine chill.
Significantly, the state of Jharkhand, which is passing through the current political crises brought about by the suspension in the prospective dismissal of the chief minister, Hemant Soren, as the governor, Ramesh Bais is yet to make the recommendation of the report of the Election Commission public. The speculations doing round confirms Hemant’s disqualification in mines allotment issue where he claims to have illegally and arbitrarily alloted the mine to himself. Small wonder then, political volatility brought about by this suspension pertaining to continuation and departure of Hemant Soren has added to the fluidity of political scenario in Jharkhand. Worse still, the huddling of MLA’s of JMM at the chief minister’s residence and their subsequent herding to a resort in Jharkhand, along with the MLA’s of the coalition partner, Congress, recently, has added further dimension to the whole issue of instability of the present regime of Hemant Soren. Also, the speculations galore pertaining to the anointment of Kalpana Soren as the designated successor to Hemant Soren in the event of his disqualification from his chief ministerial position and debarment from contesting future election for next three years, has deteriorated the political situation of the state to its nadir.
Hence against the backdrop of ongoing political volatility in Jharkhand, the gory killing of Ankita had all the chances of getting drowned in the political whataboutery, for nothing sells in India other than politics. The poor Ankita, who had not even seen this world properly, had nurtured so many dreams for her. Hailing from a poor background, she was teaching kids while continuing with her studies. Paradoxically, the young girl who would have flown high in the firmament with all her dreams, would be brutally put to death by a boy in neighbourhood who had his own set of dreams to get her by force if she resisted his advances. Ultimately, realising his dream to have her will go astray; will never develop wings, he took the drastic steps which only criminals without human sensitivity can think of even contemplating, far less crystallising, it: physically eliminating the girl he had come to love, if she could not be his by her own volition. Regrettably, the drenching her while she was asleep, with petrol and subsequently setting her ablaze, is the vindication of the beastly traits which continue to engulf the perverted mind which seeks the gratification of senses at all cost. Unequivocally then, the barbarity exhibited in the killing of Ankita is a bolt on humanity in twenty first century; it is the beginning of Talibanisation of Indian society which deserves to be nipped in bud on a fire fighting mode.
With the benefits of hindsight, the BJP’s stereotypical allegation of ‘ appeasement’ policy and Congress’ recrimination of ‘ giving the whole incident a communal colour’, was simply the futile, routine exercise of scoring brownie points over each other. Neither party has any genuine emotion or feelings for the victimisation of a young woman who fell casualty to the barbaric whims and fancy of a neighbour who had been stalking her, before setting her ablaze in the wee morning hours. Furthermore, it is for the people of India to castigate these political parties who, notwithstanding the gravity of human tragedy, invariably plunge in to give the political colour. Moreover, the nation and the jurisprudence should take the cognizance of the last wish of the victim, ‘ The way I am dying, he should die in the same way’, sssumes huge significance at present, for it was not a Hindu young girl who was killed brutally, but it was a young woman whose life was snuffed out of her body; likewise, it was not that Sharukh Hussain, a Muslim boy, but he is the barbarian who sought to forcibly enforce his own whims and fancy upon a young woman who dared to resist his unwarranted advances. Small wonder then, it is the tormented soul of an innocent girl who is no more with us, is desperately seeking justice from the much vaunted judiciary of India, will Indian judiciary stand up to her expectations, it is the million dollars question today? Worse still, the accused, Sharukh Hussain betrayed no sense of atonement at his face, rather he was seen to be smiling, makes the whole issue apparently look extremely disconcerting to the right thinking citizens of India. However, political parties should be asked to lay off, for no political whataboutery can bring solace to the departed soul; only the time bound justice alone can give peace to the tormented soul of Ankita. The situation has come to such a pass where every father-Hindu or Muslim–will not only feel nervous when their daughters venture out of their homes but will feel even more cautious and concerned when they stay indoor. Ankita episode adds further dose of tension and anxiety in the thought process of every parent in the country today.
Vivekanand Jha is an Author, Academician and a Public Intellectual. He is the Convener of Education pe Charcha.
