We are living in a time of moral decay, inhumanity and impunity. Constitutional institutions are losing their spine. Mob rule is on the rise. It’s routine for ‘justice’ to be delivered on the streets through brute force. And the system appears completely powerless — or unwilling — to stop the perpetrators. Caste cruelties are making a comeback, and the dignity of women is under constant assault.

If we look closely, we might notice a deeper shift in our attitude to social issues, in how we debate and reflect, in the shrinking space for serious thought and conversation. The possibility of engaging in civilised dialogue on any issue is vanishingly small. We seem to have neither the time nor the opportunity for thoughtful reflection. The very way in which issues are framed leave no room for dialogue — they take a form that is violent and intimidating or demoralising.

Take gender-based violence, for instance. React to it, and you’ll immediately be bombarded with questions based on religion or caste. Any criticism or dissent will be met with abuse and shaming. Speak of a shared heritage, and you’ll be threatened with sexual violence. Crimes are no longer seen as crimes — they are seen through the divisive lens of ‘us’ versus ‘them’, which shuts down dialogue.

What’s more, every time an incident of violence occurs, we channel all our energy into protecting the victims and confronting the culprits. But before we can catch our breath, another horrific case pulls our attention away. We are trapped in a reactive loop of incident-response-statement-action, leaving no room for deep conversation.

Intolerance and authoritarian tendencies are now so deeply institutionalised that most people have stopped even trying........

© National Herald