Hyderabad: The first-time Trinamool Congress MP, Mahua Moitra outshone in her maiden speech at the Indian Parliament as she opposed to the Motion of Thanks on Tuesday.
Moitra began by saying that 'early signs of fascism' are visible in the country and the Indian Constitution is now 'under threat'.
Referring to a poster on fascism at the Holocaust Memorial Museum in the US, Moitra went on to explain it in today's Indian context.
Taking a jibe at the ruling party, Moitra said that the country is now being 'torn apart' and there is only the 'lust to divide'.
Accusing the ruling bench of missing cues or signs, Moitra said, "Open your eyes, and you'd see signs everywhere that this country is being torn apart. Let me list out these dangerous signs."
In her 10-minute long speech, Moitra spoke about a number of issues from dissent, religious freedom, national security to mass media control and overpowering nationalism.
The TMC MP, not only readily presented an array of facts but quoted a number of poets to criticise the ruling government. She quoted lines from Maulana Azad, and poets Ramdhari Singh Dinkar and Rahat Indori too.
"It is the very nature of the overwhelmingness of this mandate, of the totality of this mandate, that makes it necessary for us to be heard today, for the voice of dissent to be heard today," she said.
Take a look at the seven signs that Moitra spoke about at the Parliament:
1. Extreme Nationalism:
Overpowering nationalism is searing into the national fabric, Moitra said which is 'superficial, xenophobic and narrow'. She said that there is a want to divide and not unite by the ruling party.
Moitra referred to the much controversial NRC and the Citizenship Amendment Bill saying that people living in India for 50 years or more are being asked to produce a paper to prove their citizenship while the ruling party leaders are unable to produce their college degrees.
She said, "There is no one symbol or there is no one slogan that can show any Indian that he is a patriot."
2. Disdain for human rights and lynchings over religion
Mentioning about Pehlu Khan in 2017 to another lynching incident in Jharkhand last week, Moitra said that the lynchings are 'not stopping'. She also said that there has been a 10-fold increase in the number of hate crimes in the country especially figures from the years 2014 to 2019 have increased manifolds.
Moitra also alleged that the country has a number of powerful forces, only pushing these numbers upwards.
3. Mass media control
Moitra claimed that all five giant media conglomerates are closely related to the ruling government. She said that these media houses spend time propagating messages for the ruling government.
4. National Security
The TMC MP said the ruling party is obsessed with 'national security'. She said, "There is fear pervading everywhere."
She also pointed out that there has been a significant rise in the number of deaths of jawans in JK.
5. Religion and Government
Mahua Moitra listed her fifth sign of fascism and said that religion and government have become intertwined. Only specific communities are being targeted, referring to the NRC and the Citizenship Amendment Bill 2016.
She also slammed the ruling government of being indifferent towards the rest of India while focusing only on the 2.77 acres of Ram Janmabhoomi.
6. Disrespect for intellectuals and the arts
Terming it as one of the most 'dangerous' signs, Moitra said that there has been a persistent disdain of intellectuals and the arts.
She also pointed out that there has been oppression of the liberal voices and suppression of dissent. She mentioned about the funds reduced for liberal education.
"You do not even tolerate questioning let alone dissent. The spirit of dissent is integral to India. You cannot shackle us," Mahua Moitra said.
7. Biased Electoral system
Moitra said there was an "erosion of independence in electoral system" saying that the Election Commission was used in the recently concluded Lok Sabha polls.
She also raised questions asking why the EC did not hold any party accountable for the large amount of money spent during the election campaigning.
Mahua Moitra Profile:
She was previously an investment banker, who spent her childhood in Assam and Kolkata.
She left her job in London to join politics in Bengal.
In the recently concluded 2019 general elections, she defeated BJP candidate Kalyan Chaubey in Krishnanagar constituency of West Bengal by more than 63,000 votes.
Moitra's maiden speech, in a nutshell, urged the parliamentarians to work for the Constitution and uphold its integrity. Her debut address has taken the internet by storm and has been trending as 'speech of the year' on social media.
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