एक क़िस्सा सुनाती हूँ मैं आज सन दो-हज़ार पचास का,
वक्त हो चला था इतिहास की क्लास का।

आज सिखाना था बच्चों को दो-हज़ार बीस के बारे में, 
आज बताना था बच्चों को तीस मौतों के बारे में।

वो वक्त था जब फ़र्क़ था हिंदू-मुस्लिमों के बीच में, जब दंगे छेड़ दिए थे और ना रखा था प्यार को सींच के।

खुद अल्लाह को आपसी भेद-भाव में लाए थे,
उनके नाम पर लड़ाई की, उनके ही बच्चे मौत की कगार पर आए थे।

उस वक्त लोग भूल चले थे भाई-चारे की कविताओं को,
जिन को समझने में सदियाँ बिता दी अम्बेडकर साहब की गाथाओं ने।

यह कथा सुनकर एक बच्चे की आँखें भर आईं, 
उसने रोते-रोते पूछा, “ऐसा क्या भेदभाव था जिस पर पीडिया दर पीडिया लड़ आईं?”

अध्यापक ने मुस्कुराकर बच्चे को सीने से लगाया,उन्होंने कहा, “ना जाने क्यों ऐसा ख़याल व प्रेम उन लोगों के मन में नहीं आया?”

Article 370 was recently amended in the Indian Constitution to make it unrecognizable. This led to major concerns and issues being raised by not only the Kashmiris but also citizens globally. I will be touching upon a few major aspects of this questionable decision. They are: the procedural errors in introducing this amendment to the parliament, the legal barriers in removing the sum and substance from the article, the effect of this on Kashmir as a whole and the consequences faced by the people in Kashmir in their daily lives. 

Firstly, the parliament must be informed about the amendment at least 24 hours before discussing it in either of the houses. The ruling party did not do this in the case of amending article 370. The parliamentarians from both the houses were just introduced to the bill merely half an hour before the bill was to be discussed in the house. No one from the opposition or any other party had any sort of information about the amendment of this important article. This gave the parliamentarians no time to understand, comment and give substantial amendments on this deletion. This arguably illegal move is an immense threat to the essence of democracy and to the idea that the parliament belongs to the opposition. This decision should hence be concluded as not a decision of the parliament but only the consensus of the members of the ruling party. 

Secondly, it is illegal to disturb the basic framework and the essence of the Indian Constitution through amending it. I, with numerous others, question the claim of the BJP to not have disturbed the framework through the deletion of article 370 but instead have enhanced it. According to me, this article was indeed embedded in each and every article of our constitution. By amending this one article, the ruling party has essentially amended the entire constitution. Although many individuals and PILs have posed this question in front of the Indian judiciary no concluding response has come forth. If this has changed the course of our constitution and the intentions of our then constituent assembly then not only immorally but this has also illegally changed the framework of our nation. 

Thirdly, Kashmir has been changed to not only one but two Union Territories from a state. Ever since independence the growth of any area of our country has directly depended on statehood. I am not sure how the government poses to make Kashmir a better place by doing the reverse. Especially when the entire question is of their development. Making it a Union Territory is not the only aspect of the government’s decision that could slow down Kashmir’s development; this would further be slowed down by the bad history of horrible governing of the area. 

Lastly, heavy armed presence in the state means that the administration does not have the consent of the people it has governing. Because of this multiple viable businesses have shut leading unemployment in the area. Schools have been inaccessible to the children living in Kashmir. This is a large question of its future. A place cannot develop if the youth is not well educated and well aware of its surroundings. Privacy has been intruded immensely. For every seven citizens, there is one army man. Can you imagine living in an area where you’re being watched every moment? 

Kashmir was a sad place. It has become worse. The government has disappointed me. Yet again.

The largest democracy in the world recently held its elections. It was a grand affair. The outcome of the Indian election, in my view, was nothing less than surprising. Most political analysts and magazines had predicted a hung parliament.

Although it was obvious that the Bhartiya Janta Party would have clear advantage over the Indian National Congress and even the so called Mahagathbandhan, but to have expected such a clean sweep would have been unrealistic. Especially if failed policy decisions like demonetisation and the multi tiered GST and the great emphasis on possible corruption and crony capitalism like Rafael deal would be taken into account. Rising unemployment was also meant to make a difference in the vote share of BJP.

But the most unpredictable thing of all is the human minds perhaps. And democracy by all means depends on that very human thought process.

Now isn’t the time to point fingers and to have the debate of whether bringing back BJP was a correct decision or not. Because if that debate is held the first question I would ask would be, “Why BJP again?”

In my view, all BJP delivered to India in terms of “facts and figures’ ‘ is a truly historic charismatic leader. But is charisma all you need to be suitable and good? I don’t think so. Hitler was both a leader and no less charismatic, but was he what Germany needed? I don’t think so. But then WHY? The answer to that cannot be given simply. But with an example it might become easier and make more sense. This shall explain the mindset and thought process of any voter in any democracy around the world.

A social experiment was held in which a third grader was taken to a restaurant. He was told to order a meal. But it could only be either a cake or a salad. The child, very predictably and undoubtedly, picked out the cake. But why? Salad is healthier and is definitely required for a growing child. Despite the benefits of the salad the taste of the cake always seems to win the game, even for adults.

In my view, this is exactly what happened even during the elections. The Indian voters picked out what looked and sounded good, compared to what they much more needed to become a better nation. And no, not just talks about how India is already a better nation by bias media but actually a better nation from within, with supporting unbiased facts and figures.

It is extremely hard to change the mentality of choosing the healthier over the tastier, and choosing the more suitable over the more charismatic.

But there is another thing common between picking out tasty but unhealthy food and choosing a charismatic yet not suitable leader. That thing is that in both the cases, the person himself has to suffer the consequences. Be it the unhealthy person or the voter.

To change this consequence only one thing is required: make the salad tastier. Hopefully that’ll serve the purpose and the opposition will be adamant on not only making themselves more suitable but also more charismatic for the upcoming state polls and the future national elections.

Today’s politics is less about poverty eradication, employment, education, population control; and more about religion and caste. Any educated member of the society would fail to understand why religion and caste are talked about all the time by strong politicians. Yet almost all listeners are very easily consciously or subconsciously, affected by it.

A very good example would be, if I am a Sikh, I’d like to vote for one in order to have that section of our secular country represented in the parliament.

Now this is acceptable as it in one way or the other, protects the idea of democracy. This is a healthy involvement of religion in politics. Similarly people belonging to a particular caste may vote for a person belonging to that caste.

The point where religion and caste begin to destroy democracy is when politicians start asking for votes only from members of a particular caste or religion. Secularism and democracy are all about representation but that cannot be used as a tool to take majority or minority votes. The entire point of being in politics should be to work for your countrymen. Not for Hindus. Not for Muslims. Not for Jains. Not for Christians. Not for Buddhists. Not for atheists.

Work for Indians not certain sections of the society. Because if that is who you are, you do not deserve to be in a noble profession like politics.

This election season is unique. (Not only because it’s nail biting but also because) for the first time will young, new generation, 21st century voters be allowed to vote. Why is that news? This is because we keep talking about how the government is or is not doing enough to tackle the problems of young India. This time the load will be on the shoulders of the new generation. Whether they want to re-elect the NDA government or instead choose the UPA or a third front. It will be the youths’ time to stop talking and get to action. As rightly stated by a leading politician that, there is no bigger service to a nation than being aware. Your awareness is your weapon. Your vote is your weapon, but not for causing anyone harm. This weapon should make the country stronger.

Keeping this ideology in mind, let us take a moment before pressing that button on the voting booth. Think about what you are really standing up for. Think about your responsibility. Think about what matters to you more. Remember that governments are not made by leaders but teams. Just because a leader talks well doesn’t make him qualified enough to run a country with 1.2 billion people.

Let us make these elections about the right things. Let us make this election about the right ideology. Let us vote for the candidate or party with a strong manifesto. It is important to realise that manifestos and governments run the country, not leaders and their ability to make unrealistic promises.

Besides thinking, also questions. Question each and every step taken by the government in the past five years. Don’t listen to speeches, don’t believe the promises, just see the data. See what it says. Has the employment rate increased? Are women safer now? Are the loans waived for the farmers? Is there enough diversity in the government? Is it ok to fight the elections on the basis of religion? Ask yourself. It clearly is a lot of pressure and work, so best of luck in giving us a better nation, a better government and a better PM. At last remember, that love more than you hate. The people you hate and use swear words for are also humans. Those people work for hours, go around the nation. They devote their lives to us. Remember to hate the sin and not the sinner. Know that governments come and go but what shall stay and should be protected by us and the government is our democracy, that is what truly matters (stated by Atal Bihari Vajpayee). Jai Hind!

Introduction to the problem:

Although women make half of India’s population, sexism is still a major issue faced by us today.  But to be very honest, it is reduced a considerable amount over time. To achieve this in a modern yet conservative society like ours, is an accomplishment.

Women representation has increased a lot, in the past decade, in the private and the public sector, compared to the 1990s.

Private sector has seen a 2.5% increase in women employees, and the public sector has seen an increase of 3%, in the past 7 years. That is an excellent amount of improvement if compared with the slow paced growth of female workers in the late 20th century.

But there is one important pillar of our country that hasn’t seen any improvement at all, in this sector. That is, politics.

Only 11% of the Lok Sabha and 10.3% of the Rajya Sabha has female members.

We did see our first Female Prime Minister soon after independence and first female President soon after the 2000s began, but they were also one of the only women who had a household name in politics.

What exactly has led to this major issue?

Two major issues include, lack of education of young girls in the rural and urban poor, and the conservative mindset among people. Besides these two issues, the lack of understanding the importance of equal representation in law making is another major challenge.

There are only a few people who run the country on the behalf of millions of individuals. Diversity is necessary within this important spectrum to provide a voice to all genders, races, castes and religions.

It is extremely important to realise that even countries which are comparatively modern face this issue. No better example than that of America.

What can be done about it?

Awareness needs to be spread in order to get a positive response on women participation in the legislature.

Not only this but there, also, should be a (temporary) reasonable reservation for women in political parties all over India. Some constituencies should also be reserved to make sure these women are given justice to raise their voice.

Ultimately it is the women who have to fight for their and their nation’s benefit. If given the opportunity they should showcase their leadership qualities like Mrs. Indira Gandhi and Pratibha Devisingh Patil.

The final goal:

It is to let every young girl dream of being the future PM of India, without being told it is unrealistic.

With the increasing rates of student suicides, the question becomes not whether the society loves us or not but whether they are doing justice to it.

Who is to blame for the suicide of these young individuals, potentially the future of India? Is it the parents? The peer pressure? The educational system? Or they themselves?

I think the answer to this major question is that all these people have a role to play in the death of our future.

Let’s begin with the people who give birth to, and raise these youngsters, the parents. The role parents play in an individual’s growth and mindset is comparatively more than any other part of their lives. Not only do the children get influenced by them but also inspired. The hard truth is that these parents are raising their children with the mindset they grew up with. They tell them that all that matters for them is that one piece of paper they bring home with (hopefully) an A on it. This makes the child feel helpless and worthless (intentionally or not).

Some parents and family members go to the extent of forcing their own dreams onto the student, who perhaps hasn’t discovered his/ her own calling yet.

All this makes them lose themselves, and the great amount of helplessness causes them to take their own lives and snatching away an integral part of our society’s development.

Another important aspect of a student’s life is his/ her friends, classmates and schoolmates. They influence the thought process of a person. Sometimes children go to the height of putting their lives and passion at risk in order to satisfy the needs of their friends and that of the society. Often, under pressure of these, usually unintentional circumstances, students sacrifice their health and lives.

I, personally, think that the one to blame the most is the education system. Although made with the right intentions, it is destroying individualism, dreams and lives. Initially made with the idea of testing patience and memory, it soon turned into a tool of judgment of one’s personality and future. The system not only wants us to ace in all subjects, irrespective of their relevance in the future we want to make, but also the choices of students are being subconsciously affected and changed by the  morally corrupt system.

Students, themselves, need to understand the importance of a broad based education, the concerns of the parents and the family. But above all they need to put their health and dreams first. They need to stand up for themselves and their fellow youngsters. And provide the best they can to the society and the world.

The parents need to sit and think a lot, about how they are going about teaching their children things that might not be of any use to them but instead make them feel helpless and confused. I think parents would know better how important their child is to them and how they can improve their relationship with their children in order to see them successful and happy. Students also need to understand that their parent’s lives also, to an extent, revolve around their own future, and how devastated the parents would be if they took such an extreme step.

So what we all need to do is step back and introspect what all we can do as a society and as an individual, depending on which pillar of education and students we consist of. We need to know where we went wrong and how we can improve.

A survey shows that most of the people on social media are between the age of 15 and 41. Most youngsters are using social media as a platform to express their views, which is also leading to increased chances of offence. As much as the youngsters have a capacity to change and accept the Midwest, that are also very adamant about their beliefs and opinions. Unfortunately, it sometimes goes to the extent of not being thoughtful and accepting towards others feelings.

This has led to a stereotype about social media. Which believes that it is a platform to spread hatred and, an awful amount of, privacy is being breached.

I have a different view. Social media wasn’t created to breach privacy or to spread hatred. It was made to stay up to date, stay in contact, and share (and accept) opinions.

So, by focusing on the positive objectives of social platforms we can decide for ourselves, whether, we want to bring about a change and widen the perspective about different cultures and societies around the world, or if we want to destroy people’s lives.

I think for a young and vibrant population, like ourselves, the latter shouldn’t be an option.

To use social media to influence and benefit the society we need to learn how to differentiate between hating an idea we don’t agree with and living the idea we believe in.

Most people have social media (even those who aren’t educated enough). Hence, we can do a very important thing through it. That is, to spread awareness about social-political issues, to people who might not otherwise have the underlying of such complex and important issues. This will make the process of elections and protests easier, better and wider.

But, remember one thing, don’t criticise the point of view you don’t like, instead, advertise the one that you do like.

Don’t get confused, there is a major difference.

I don’t remember the last time I sat down and actually thought about thinking. Thinking before talking. Thinking before doing. Thinking before thinking. Thoughts just strike one’s mind and Ione should try one’s best to say what one wants to, do what one wants to and think what one wants to, but in an organised manner.

Once, I was watching a documentary, on rape. Somehow, I noticed (without thinking, obviously), that all the girls getting raped, in India, were shown as wearing “short” clothes.

It got me thinking whether wearing short clothes or being drunk has something to do with rapes. Were there chances of rapes being directly proportional to each decreasing inch of your skirt?

I asked my family and friends. According to them it contributed to attracting men’s attention to the wrong places at the wrong time.

I was pretty young during the time of this discussion. I blindly believed what the society around me believed (without thinking, obviously).

When I grew older and became a little bit more mature and aware, I decided to analyse the issue for myself. It became a hot topic, as the rapes were increasing. There were a lot of opinions.

The thinking (for the first time) did pay off!

I realised that wearing short clothes is a stigma in India. We believe that women wearing short clothes, or having alcohol, have an objectionable character.

And are asking for trouble. Therefore, we created a stereotype.

If I, today, being a girl, start believing that I want to wear short clothes but I won’t because the society I live in will judge and label my personality. This vicious cycle will never end. If we believe that it’s okay to wear what you want to and do what you want in the west, we will never be able to bring an end to this problem.

To put an end to this we need to sit and think. We need to stand up against it, to end it. To break a stigma you have to spread awareness. If you decide to go with the flow, do not crib. No one has ever achieved anything by whining, only.

If you decide to take an action against a stereotype, remember, every action has an equal and opposite reaction. There will be many people who wouldn’t accept your opinion but you have to stand strong and be patient.

I am a teenager, a commoner, a young Indian citizen and, perhaps, the most unimportant person in the whole of India.

But there will come a time when I will be an adult and I will have my name on one of the voters’ lists in India.

Unfortunately, it is only then that the government will approach me asking for a vote and promoting all of their so-called schemes.

Sometimes I get frustrated, I’m sure other youngsters do too.

We can’t vote, it is understood. We aren’t mature and developed enough. But are we not allowed to interact with the government, too. India is the largest youngest country. There are 243 million adolescents like me in India, and, on an average, less than 8% of the government schemes are indicated towards only us.

The government does not know what the youth wants from them. They do not care what we need because we don’t vote.

None of the governments have been successful in meeting the needs of the young Indians. They haven’t bothered to even make proper efforts to communicate with us.

Adolescents don’t always need a solution. Sometimes all I need is for someone to hear me out, in an open-minded manner.

I remind the government, we are the future. We are buoyant with ideas and we’re full of life and love. It is high time they realise that it is us who need so much more investment. Because it isn’t about one child, or a million, it is about our future and India’s growth and development.

All this, depends on how lovingly you nurture us, and make us into successful, compassionate, loving, encouraged, happy and independent citizens.

Little do the politicians know that who India desperately needs is a youngster who walks into a messy room of thoughts, fights, hatred and politics, and says, “I am going to fix this, we are going to fix this.”