Lie in the Heart

Lying to yourself is one of the most self-destructive things, said one of Dostoevsky’s characters. “The man who lies to himself and listens to his own lie comes to a point that he cannot distinguish the truth within him or around him and so loses all respect for himself and for others. And having no respect he ceases to love.”

Have we as a nation arrived at the zenith of falsehood and the consequent impotence to love?

The latest incident that makes me raise this question is the removal of the CBI chief Alok Verma and his entire team. The Prime Minister misused his powers to take this illegal and unconstitutional action. As the Opposition has pointed out, “The only plausible explanation for this desperate and hasty move is an attempt to scuttle the ongoing investigations into the Special Director’s [Rakesh Asthana who is Modi’s mole] cases that might cause significant embarrassment to [the] Government.”

Too many individuals who became a threat to the Prime Minister’s dictatorial and depraved ways have been victimised in different ways. Hundreds of genuine NGOs were put to sleep merely to pave way for Modi’s free march on the royal road to despotism. Almost all institutions of any significant influence have been populated with right wing adherents. The country’s history is being rewritten. Textbooks are tampered with. Young minds have been perverted.

More and more people are learning to lie to their own hearts. Their survival depends on mastering that craft. Or they have been brainwashed without their own knowledge. The distinction between truth and falsehood has vanished. Rather, truth has vanished. Has become irrelevant, unsustainable.

There are 36 official and scores more unofficial organisations working in the country at present with a single-minded dedication towards a goal that does not seem to be quite noble if we consider the means employed. One can only hope that the elections coming next year will make a meaningful difference to the nation.