Weekend Musings
By Kaushal Kishore*
Sadly, I’m not connected to any member of the group chat on the social media that first discussed about the SARS like symptoms that latter confined half the world at homes or shelters, however, I’m seldom active on such platforms. Now think about the severe and acute respiratory syndrome that can make breathing impossible, and thereby creating a demand for ventilators across the globe. Dr. Li Wenliang, a medical practitioner and a CCP member since sophomore days, and seven others were reprimanded by the Police at least five weeks before his sacrifice. Never before such a huge world was compelled to pay for the humiliation of a professional, who was talking about an outbreak of the deathly disease.
Dr. Li was the first medical professional infected from the virus through a patient at Wuhan Central Hospital. He was happy at last, for a short while, when the judgment against the punishments came from the Chinese Supreme People’s Court. Then the Chairman of Everything in China noticed it and declared him the martyr for that sacrifice on Friday, 7th February, 2020. Meanwhile, China Lie People Die, appeared on account of it, and his wife, who is expecting their second offspring, received the first grade civilian honour.
Today quarantine and lockdown are newly coined old terms from WHO lexicon. Profound impact of its Director General in Africa can be ascertained from the fact that on 18th April, when the COVID-19 caused 13 deaths in Nigeria, the security forces have killed 18 people while enforcing the lockdown.
None has been spared, and the entire human race seems to be involved in the fight against an invisible enemy. This war of 21st century is not like the two world wars of the 20th century, but with the dragon’s rise and fall it’s not less than the third world war. Meanwhile, one of my best friends from the Indian Police Service defined the rules on his Facebook wall that restricts us in India to continue such a group chat on social media. Indeed it’s the worst extension of a surveillance state, and liberal world is afraid of this idea borrowed from the top dictators. At the same time, it helps them to continue the prevailing police state. The cops are beating innocent people across the states and compelling them to write apologies. The mob lynching is yet another reality. Now even the sadhus are not spared. The compromised unrest can render an excellent ground to hide failures of the governments.
My bizarre thoughts, while moving towards what President Donald Trump said about the leak of a biological weapon at a virology lab in China, for a while lingers on Sarab Jeet, who died in the Pakistani prison before the state funeral in India. Ian Lipkin, one of the top virologists, contradicts due to lack of evidence, and the real source of the virus is still a mystery. The 2020 race between Republican Trump and Democrat Biden for presidency in the US is going to have considerable impact of the sacrifice and its aftermath that is not going to be less than that of the two world wars combined. The Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo cites links between the wet markets and zoonotic diseases. Recently, US has called on China to close all its wildlife wet markets permanently.
In India, we are neither in the state of an emergency nor even a formal curfew but an ever increasing lockdown as an extension of that Sunday Janata Curfew celebrations. The conch blowing and ringing bells, pots and pans further unfolded with the two epic wars on the national television. The first five weeks are enough to indicate how the future is going to be. The health emergency suddenly reduced the world in five words i.e. Lock-Down, Quarantine, Social-Distancing, Face-Mask and Ventilator. Today, all appeals for ‘No Panic’ seems to create more pain. The propaganda and rumour factories are in full swing that started with the misnomer ‘social-distancing’ that replaced the old idea of physical distance in case of a deathly disease. It proved to be the most powerful keyword with an effective meaning for the battlefield. At last the Prime Minister was compelled to appeal for unity and brotherhood, mentioning the fact that the virus does not see race, religion, colour, caste, creed, language or borders before the strike.
At Indore, Dr. Shatrughna Panjwani was known among the poor patients before his death due to the virus, and with this the repeatation of the Chinese oddity started in India. And extended with the death of Dr. Nizamuddin, involved with the Tabligis to contain the virus spread. The humiliation at sites of last rites of Dr. Sailo at Shillong and Dr. Simon at Chennai hurts deeply. The attacks on the medical teams at different places narrate rather deplorable condition. These acts are the results of fear and panic. Unfortunately that’s on peak these days. The special funerals of corona victims are the only viable option, and all states and communities are needed to ensure it. The purpose of such an event ought to be the removal of fear and restoration of peace.
On 1st January 2020, the dragon’s wings restored Huanan Sea Food Market that’s believed to be the birthplace of the virus. The shutdown was initially forced in Wuhan, then entire Hubei province, and that further extended to certain other provinces as well. WHO copiously advised to follow a similar shutdown, and the world began to turn into China. Recently, Germany joined the alliance of US, UK and France against China. Berlin called out Beijing’s responsibility for the pandemic and issued a £130 billions invoice. After Exit China Mantra hundreds of multi national corporations are leaving them, and the India Inc. hopes to gain from it.
Diplomacy in independent India started on the concept that the friends remain in the heart and neighbours in intestines. Our domestic and foreign policies are based on Atithi Devo Bhava and Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam. My first interaction with the Chinese people started almost eight years ago, at Manikarnika Ghat in Benares during a series of interviews with the Ganga Rights activists. That afternoon, I saw Zinu Li was helping Baba Naga Nath, who was sitting on Anshan for Aviral Ganga. We need to inform her that the Ganga Putri started fasting before Dr. Li shared his views on the social media to save the world. Padmavati is yet to recover.
*Kaushal Kishore is a member of All India Panchayat Parishad from Bihar. The writer is the author of The Holy Ganga (Rupa, 2008), Managing Editor of Panchayat Sandesh. His column, Across The Lines, appears in vernacular publications. The published article is his own views.
