Republic Day? Independence Day?

Preface: This started out as a thread on my Twitter. Decided it made sense here too.

Last Wednesday, we marked our 73rd Republic Day. In years past, you could send a telegram to family and friends with the message, "Greetings of Republic Day. Long live the Republic". The telegram has since faded into history. Now, sadly, so has the kernel of the message.

If you look at how our two national festivals; Independence Day is the other one; are observed these days, there is little to separate them, barring the parade on one and the PM's speech from Red Fort ramparts on the other.

The same playlist appears both times, "Jo shahid hue hain unki zara yaad karo qurbani", "Ye desh hai veer jawanon ka", "Jahan daal daal par sone ki chidiya karti hai basera", and of course songs from Kaneda Kumar's latest fratriotic film, is trotted out.

Schools, colleges and RWAs have flag salutes and National Anthem, no doubt accompanied these days by a slipshod Vande Mataram. And tedious speeches by 'important people'. (It is poorly understood why the flag is unfurled on Republic Day and hoisted on Independence Day, and most such events miss the distinction in any case).

The patriotic spirit finds expression in donning kurta-pyjama or salwar-kameez, ideally with hints of the tricolour somewhere. Plastic flags are pinned to lapels and dupattas and babies' bibs. (They will be mercilessly trampled by day's end; turn into non-compostable litter).

What, exactly, of the spirit of the day will all these, faux-impassioned celebrants of the day, take away from the cacophony? Perhaps a sense of how well they were able to show (off) their conspicuous patriotism. (Joshi didn't even show up. So unpatriotic na?)

No, dear Ms. Patriot, Republic Day is not just more of the same thing which happened in August last year, though the kit you picked out is the same, and you wear it only twice a year, right?

Independence Day is a day of gratitude and relief. Gratitude for the myriad sacrifices, small and big, which hundreds of million Indians, united only by their single minded commitment to free their country from the colonial yoke, paid over many decades leading up to 1947.

Republic Day is different. It is the day when we look ahead, when, as the Preamble puts it so beautifully, solemnly resolved to "Constitute India into a Sovereign, Socialist, Secular, Democratic Republic" and secure to all citizens, "Justice, Liberty, Equality and Fraternity".

Republic Day is a solemn commitment to the times before, not behind, us. Independence Day looks backward, Republic Day looks into the future when, to borrow a phrase from another beautiful document, the Preamble to the American Constitution, we can form a "more perfect union".

What is a republic? A country where the ultimate sovereign power is with the people; ALL the people of the country. Where there is no sovereign above the people. Canada is a democracy but NOT a republic. A foreigner, EIIR, is the sovereign.

India is a republic. Each and every one of us, big or small, rich or poor, is, quite literally, the highest authority in the land. WE are sovereign. WE resolved solemnly to constitute OURSELVES into the republic. It was not ordained by someone else.

We are SOVEREIGNS, not subjects. We are NOT praja, because every one of us, in the soaring imagination of our Constitution authors, is the wellspring of the power and authority which we, only temporarily, entrust to our elected representatives. We are NAGARIK, citizens, equal and equipotent as the collective highest authority in the land.

So why did Joshi not participate in the twee celebrations today? Because the spirit of sovereignty is fast disappearing. We are reminded, frequently, of how a benevolent raja is looking after his praja. Ramrajya, some call it.

If you have stayed so long, you'll probably not mind some small blasphemy (there have been so many already in the post, for those of the devoted persuasion, so where's the harm?).

No, the Indian Republic should NEVER be a Ramrajya, not even in whatever sense Bapu used it. Ramrajya still means that we have a sovereign, benevolent, but all-powerful, above us. That we are subjects, not rulers.

Republic Day 1950 appointed us RULERS. And let's hope we will always be the sovereigns in this Republic of India that is Bharat.

Long Live The Republic!