I grew up learning and also being warned about how the divide and rule policy of the British had destroyed India.
I grew up learning the history lessons about our freedom fighters with absolute no discrimination among them for being Hindus, Muslims or any religion. I grew up recognising the tricolour flag as mine.
I grew up reading the national pledge in my school which mentioned “I love my country and I am proud of its rich and varied heritage”.
I grew up learning the six fundamental rights of India which was given so much importance that the teachers made us memorize those six rights.
I grew up learning about democracy on which our teachers spoke for hours. And made us memorize the saying of Abraham Lincoln that democracy is “by the people, for the people and of the people. Grew up reading chapters of Unity in Diversity.
Grew up where our teachers warned us about the politicians, their agendas and how most of them become selfish when in power. Grew up with so much more and so many good memories.
Also just a few years down the line during my college days a piece of cloth on my head was never a hurdle for me or never ever did I experience any amount of bully or discrimination for it.
I had made friends from all religions, we used to sit together, laugh together and have so much fun together. If any such situation would have arisen back then I am sure we would have stood strong beside each other.
Now I know this is because we learnt and shared the same lessons of love, unity and equality as children in our schools. That was India I grew up in.
I never thought that the ignorant ones will rise to power.
Never thought that slogans of ‘Go back to Pakistan’, will be thrown at us, which breaks my heart into pieces.
Never thought that my love and sincerity towards my homeland will be questioned.
Never thought that our own people would be instigated against us.
Never thought that I would witness the amount of communalism and intolerance instilled among our youth towards one another.
Never thought that the daughters of India would face this amount of hatred and would be deprived of their education just for a piece of cloth on their head.
Never thought that saffronisation will snatch away the beauty of my India this way.
Alas, I never thought all of which I learnt as a child and dreamt of about my country will make no sense one day.
All the good days I have witnessed and lived now look like a far fetched dream when my daughter grows up and enters her college life. It’s frightening how things have deteriorated just in one generation.
