Reason over blind emotion

The New Indian Express
First Published : 03 Apr 2010 11:14:00 PM IST
Last Updated : 03 Apr 2010 12:34:52 AM IST

Politicians are supposed to be, by definition, chary of putting principle above pragmatism, especially when it comes to taking a public stand contrary to prevailing mores. Clearly, then, E V K S Elangovan, ex-Union minister and former Tamil Nadu Congress party head, is not your usual politician. And, since this column has often urged people to take a stand in favour of a more liberal polity, we offer our commendation. It was only last November that Tamil fanatics threw bombs at his Chennai house after Elangovan tore down posters put up to mark the birth anniversary of V Prabhakaran, the would-be chief of a Lankan Tamil nation. Elangovan must have been almost the only politician in any party to publicly denounce Prabhakaran as a fascist-cum-terrorist, one undeserving of Tamil respect. The other day, he must have further condemned himself in the eyes of fanatics by having an audience burst into laughter with jokes at Tamil language chauvinism. Our staffer reported him as noting a language was only a set of sounds and it was absurd to insist that one such lot of sounds was superior to other intonations of the throat.

There could be many who legitimately differ from his views. What we commend is the fact that here is a man in public life who dares to differ, urging people to use reason instead of blind emotion. This is not the sort of thing one expects from those who aspire to high office in public life and it is an amusing exercise to ponder what that arch iconoclast, Ramaswamy ‘Periyar’ Naicker, would make of his grandnephew’s views on modern-day icons. He would probably differ, maybe with much anger, at some of his descendant’s views, but could hardly object to the latter’s assuming the right to dissent against what passes for Tamil political orthodoxy. It is this point we’d like to single for appreciation, for this is the heart of a democratic society — the freedom to think, to read, to reason and to express. Without violence, one need hardly add. The same rights must be given to others, unless they insist on backing their own views with fists and worse. It is a latitude in short supply in much of our polity, this upholding of the right to propagate the view you dislike. Which is why we’d like much more of this spirit which is unafraid to differ, using facts and reason, and expecting a response in like manner.