LET'S STOP BEING RACIST

         When you are outside Assam, it is very common to hear that Assam is a jungle, 'Assamee' are chinkis, Chinese and all. There happen some worse incidents too. Yes it is racism. People of mainland India find people of Northeast junglee, it is a fact, though the scene is improving day by day. In most of the cases, it is more a joke or sheer ignorance rather than being a case of hatred.

But how different we are?

In our north eastern tribal states, 'outsiders' including Assamese will never be treated in a polite way. Let us take an example where you hit a car or get hit by a car on the street of these cities. You cannot escape without paying a big price and it is not only about money, remember.

Next see the case of different tribes within a tribal state. Some of them think they are mightier, because may be the length of the 'Dao' they carry is more than that of the other tribe? May be!! And a guy from this 'smaller' tribe will have to face the same problem that an 'Outsider' faces. He will live in the fear of those who are 'mightier'.

Let's enter Assam now. No one can stop us when it is about thrashing a Bihari who earns his bread and butter by cutting your hair or polishing your shoes. See we do it for our Greater Assamese interest.! We do it to save our so called Jaati, Maati and Bheti...!! Right?? Let me disagree with you!

When it comes about us, about Assam or about greater Assamese society, we are all bloody hypocrites. Until and unless it is a debate to win against 'outsiders', we never consider other Assamese tribal people as ours, nor do they consider themselves Assamese. Otherwise whole Assam wouldn't have filled with illegal immigrants today. Till yesterday, Karbi were our Bhumiputros, and today everywhere on social media we are shouting, Karbihotok maribo lage, katibo lage.....omuk tomuk (Kill the karbis, cut them into pieces..etc.). Because today they have killed two of our beautiful souls in the most merciless way possible. That cry.. Moi axomiya, mur deta...mur maa....(I am an Assamese.. my father is an Assamese.. my mother is an Assamese..please spare me).... nothing could stop those Bhumiputros to at least left them alive. Pathetic. This is how much they own you...this is how much you own them. This is not a bloody case of Xoopa Dhora (Child lifters), this is hatred. This is also the reality of aimless Assamese youths at certain regions where they get drunk by 6 pm and even killing can be a sport for them! That is a different matter though.

This is great that we are on the streets for justice. The culprits should be behind the bars, they should be hanged, no alternatives.

My point is, stop all these hatred. Try to accept all within Assam as our own. Not just on social media, but in real life too. We cannot bring back Nilotpal and Abhijit. We can only feel the pain they have gone through in last hours of their life and ensure not another Nilotpal goes through that pain...or another Abhijit.. or you..or me!

So if we are serious about saving our Jaati Maati aru Bheti, LET'S STOP BEING RACIST first.

A sweet and Simple Story..

I was on the backseat of our bike on the street of Goa. Very casually I asked my friend to stop the bike near a roadside dustbin and I threw the empty can I was holding for quite some time. We were about to move again when an elderly person stopped us and told me “thank you for doing your part in keeping my city clean”. I just smiled at him and left.

I carried that smile on my face for the rest of the day.. without any effort..:)

Let me share a sweet and simple story I read in an Assamese daily. It was from my schooldays and I can’t remember the writer of the article now. So the story was that he was travelling from Guwahati to Shillong in a taxi accompanied by a Foreigner. Like everyone, they were also enjoying the beautiful route. They ate some chocolates and quite naturally for him, he opened the car window to through the wrapper of the chocolate outside.

Unexpectedly, the foreign guy stopped him and took the wrapper in a side pocket of his bag. He did the same with his chocolate as well and it happened twice throughout the journey. First my author had no clue why the hell this fellow needs some chocolate wrapper!

When they reached the hotel at Shillong, he taught my author a beautiful lesson. He just opened the pocket of his bag and threw all those wastage in the hotel dustbin. 

I owe my smile on Goa Street to that gentleman.. ☺☺☺

"The nation did not want to know"

There must be a reason when someone sets himself on fire in front of a huge crowd, even knowing that his kids at home may suffer without him.  Unfortunate it happened yesterday. In front of Assam secretariat, a farmer killed himself, losing hope of having a piece of land he can feel secured enough. Assam police  could not save his life, though they were "well equipped" with jar of drinking water (as seen in photos published by different agencies) to fight a pre- declared agitation.

It happened within the boundary of a country named India, where one observes massive role of media. Even if there is no issue, we create one just to sell the next breaking news. Then obviously one can expect that whole country must have gone traumatized or rather curious about this tragic incident.

Reality, not always EXACTLY what we think!

When people switched on their television in the evening around different cities in India, the footage of a man burning alive was not there to disturb them. At 9 pm, "The nation did not want to know" why a farmer had to take such a bizarre step. But WHY were all of them so indifferent? Is it because to die for a cause, the guy chose a wrong place which can't guarantee TRP's or high circulation of the fourth pillar of democracy? 

During the era when twitter can literally make people commit suicide, there was no trending topic related to this incident. Obviously, when we need to troll someone without even knowing the reason or when we make fun of someone even on her birthday only because she has bigger physique, we are unbeatable, my friend. 

(Image taken from anonymus source)