‘Normal’ is boring. Normal is taken for granted. Normal is greatly undervalued. But when normal is disrupted, its worth becomes obvious. Getting up, commuting to school or work, being with friends, family and colleagues, enjoying lunches and dinners prepared at home or in favourite restaurants – losing oneself in cliched TV serials or blockbuster movies. All this is part of everyday life, but it hasn’t come easy. Generations have worked hard, endured difficulties and taken on challenges to bring about this ordinary, normal existence.
And then a bomb blast in the midst of this matrix reminds us of the value there is in ordinary existence. There are those who do not appreciate unspectacular progress, who would have revolutions and strife to achieve some ideological mirage. So, even in a fair and democratic society – that provides opportunities for all to contribute in their own way – sickness of the mind and soul makes its presence felt.
Why should well-educated persons wish to take the lives of innocent people? Doctors trained to save human lives, one of the most noble of professions, radicalised to the point that they manufacture poison to mix with the public’s drinking water, or collect hundreds of kilos of explosives to use against innocent people going about their daily pursuits – earning a normal wage, caring for families, not seeking to harm others?
The nation needs to defend itself against this malaise. It can only do so by being ever alert, never letting its guard down, not being complacent. This should be amongst the highest priorities, certainly more than personal or political interests. And, yet, knowing fully well the inevitable consequences, terrorism is sought to be justified, vindicated, enabled, and defended under one or the other pretext. For instance, the question is asked, “Why do such incidents happen only around election time?” That is because an election is ongoing almost all the time in India. It is one of the reasons that the ‘one nation, one election’ proposal has been made.
Do not people see the situation around the world, where conditions are such that people would do anything to have the humdrum ‘normal’ India has been able to bring about. Are they not aware of what they have irrespective of what religion, race or region they belong to? How do they develop a mindset that destroys the hopes, dreams and aspirations of ordinary people just getting along with their lives? Such doctors need a cure for their malady!
