No pat for Patole
The threat issued to film stars Amitabh Bachchan and Akshay Kumar by Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee President Nana Patole is shocking and has to be condemned in the strongest words.
Patole, expressed dissatisfaction over the silence of Bachchan and Akshay Kumar on the rising fuel prices in the country. He criticised the two for not speaking up on the issue, which affects their fans, ‘who spend money to buy tickets for shows of their movies’. Patole then said that the films of the two artistes will not be watched and they will not be able to shoot in Maharashtra. This is an open threat to the two artistes.
Just because his party is an alliance partner in the state government does not mean he or his party own Maharashtra.
Patole is not a small-time politician, having been in politics for decades. He is a tall man, but by his statement, he has proved that he is tall only physically and is too small a politician, when it comes to respecting democracy and free speech.
Free speech also means that people have the right to refrain from speaking. Nobody can be forced to speak on any issue, just as no voice can be muzzled. Patole wondered if Bachchan and Akshay Kumar were under pressure from Modi government to remain silent on the rising fuel prices. Even if he presumes that the two stars are under pressure, demanding that they should speak up is bad enough, as that amounts to putting pressure to speak up.
No doubt actors, writers and all eminent people also have to pay the same price for fuel as the common people, but it is not necessary that they should feel for the people who cannot afford to pay such high prices for fuel. The increase in fuel prices results in increase in the prices of essential commodities and of food items in restaurants. Those whom Patole has targeted, do not feel the pinch of inflation. Whether they speak up or not, people will continue to watch their films. Apart from being a threat, it is wishful thinking by Patole that people will boycott films of these two film stars.
It is said that a person’s character is judged by the company he/she keeps. Patole’s party is in alliance with the Shiv Sena, which has a history of issuing threats and carry them out too. However, there is a marked change in the overall attitude of the Shiv Sena, after coming to power, but Patole seems to want to fill the gap created by Shiv Sena’s changed behaviour.
Patole was the Speaker of the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly, yet he has taken an undemocratic stand. Apart from deviating from democratic norms, he has caused great damage to his party, of which he has become the state president less than a week ago.
Congress is struggling to recover the ground it has lost in electoral politics all over the country. The party’s position in Maharashtra is better than what it is in many other states. But, such threats, especially to eminent personalities, will make people move away from the party. The pro-Bharatiya Janata Party mainstream media is bound to make a capital of Patole’s statement by running it repeatedly and by holding discussions; the process has already started. Television channels have found this more important than the case of the three girls, suspected to have been sexually assaulted in Unnao.
Patole and his party must apologise for his statement and should withdraw it.