The Mangalore episode

Yet another controversy has surfaced in Karnataka and it is quickly doing the rounds in other states as well - yes, to drink or not to drink, or to be more precise, should Indian girls drink (alcohol, of course) and if they do wouldn’t that be going against Indian culture? We were a witness to hours of debate on almost all TV channels with no mutually agreeable solutions in sight. Simply because the issue at hand is as complex as the term culture itself. To further get into what constitutes or should constitute or would constitute Indian culture is altogether another horribly tiring complex process. It is quite evident from all that has been written / discussed / shown / seen that each one has an agenda – the group that attacked the girls, the victims, the government and of course our media. The group in question claims that it is their ‘moral duty’ to clean up the ‘mess’ (and they sure know what that means), the ‘attacked’ believe in their right to freedom in a democracy (and they sure know what freedom means), the government proclaims that it has a moral and legal duty to establish a safe and secure (if not secular) society (they sure know what their responsibilities are) and the media relentlessly running their own trials and giving out fast verdicts faster than our fast track courts and mind you they very well know what their job is. (At times however I feel some of them are in the wrong job sitting in the studio instead of in the courtroom). Who is ‘right or wrong’ here? One says drinking is not Indian culture; another says hurting women is not Indian culture. ‘Who gave you the right to moral policing’, asks the media and the group in question retorts ‘who should’? Did anyone give the right to Mahatma Gandhi to fight? Did Nelson Mandela seek permission from the government to revolt? Although these questions seem logical they are also specious, as answers to each of these would depend on one’s own subject(ive) position. For this very reason getting into discussing the semantics of culture or for that matter Indian culture or who is right or wrong in this context would be a futile exercise. Instead let us look at the implications of this growing addiction to drinking, especially among the youth. There’s no denying the fact alcohol in someway is related to crimes. Statistics / research proves it. Let us look at the increase in crime rates, drunken driving and consider ways and means to control this menace. Alcoholism among the youth is a serious problem today in all metros and especially in a city like Bangalore. No parent wants his or her ward to take to alcohol including the ones that drink. When they can’t control or discipline their wards any more they resort to justification and right to personal freedom in an attempt to hide their helplessness. Let us answer honestly to ourselves if what is happening today is an encouraging trend. Should we ape the west blindly in the pretext of individual freedom? As regards many social issues the west is regretting now. Must we commit the same mistakes in order to learn?