A Dehradun bandh was held on Sunday seeking a CBI inquiry into the Ankita Bhandari murder case, in the context of the VIP believed to have asked for ‘special services’, despite the fact that the government had already acceded to the demand. It was only natural for there to have been a lacklustre response as the motive was considered more political than anything else. And that is the danger – if a movement deviates from the declared cause – much like what happened with Anna Hazare’s protest, it cannot have the required impact.
Having pressured the Uttarakhand Government to accept its demands, those seeking justice for Ankita should have gracefully acknowledged the success and not sought to raise the level of confrontation to an unnecessary level. In fact, some leaders of the protest have now attached further specific demands to their agenda, despite the fact that the CBI will anyway need to undertake a comprehensive investigation to arrive at any conclusion. Such behaviour by the protesters only leads to losing the trust of the people.
It may be recalled that after the demand for separate statehood was achieved, many of the movement leaders were rejected at the polls. Voters handed over power to mainstream national parties. Why did that happen? Because, while the statehood demand was justified, the motivation of many was linked to personal and partisan causes, which fact was recognised by the people.
This, of course, does not imply that there are not among the present day protestors those with a better understanding of the matter who are focused on the objective of complete justice being delivered. If, for instance, there is a VIP involved and not made accountable, justice remains incomplete. Hopefully, they will keep matters on course as this success may encourage some to consider it a platform for political activism, as elections are not so far away. The movement should not be allowed to be hijacked in this way, as it would be injustice to Ankita.
