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What’s the worth of democracy if it can’t protect personal liberties? If the state controls citizen’s political consciousness, compelling them to do only what suits the ruler’s interests, what’s the purpose of individual freedom and rights? Liberty isn’t an ornament to embellish the individual; it empowers people to decide their choices, question the government’s unconscionable acts and dissent against injustice. British historian Lord Acton whose timeless dictum – power tends to corrupt and absolute power corrupts absolutely – reverberates across the world, also said, “Liberty is not a means to a higher political end; it is itself the highest political end.”

Liberty bleeds when the police hunt down citizens who participated in protests against Narendra Modi. Reports suggest that the government identified protesters through sophisticated surveillance techniques and started chasing them across cities. Young boys and girls, who wrote placards, shouted slogans and, in some cases, crossed the line by heaping abuses on the prime minister are now treated like the enemy of the state.

Their homes have been raided, parents threatened and even FIRs registered against a good few. This happened despite a formal deal between the organisers of the protest and the government that no coercive action would follow.

No government can dream of constructing a citizen of its own liking. Citizens are not toys running on batteries gifted by governments. They have a mind and a heart of their own. Politicians win elections with the limited mandate to govern; electoral victory doesn’t make them the authorised arbitrator of morality and righteousness. Giving free ration to the poor doesn’t mean the government has earned the right to ration their freedoms.

People who think differently, whose vision doesn’t align with the philosophy of the incumbent rulers will differ and dissent. A confident nation and a genuine leader allow citizens to freely express themselves. Ideas emerge through this social churning, challenging status quo and triggering political renewal.

Modi occasionally pays lip service to democratic ideals and invites citizens to criticise his policies but such a performative flair is meant only to steal some personal legitimacy against the ill-effects of his undemocratic deeds. He revels in sycophancy. If he were truly democratic, he would have faced questions from independent media instead of fooling the world with orchestrated conversations. Even a rickshaw-puller knows the little girls who shouted slogans at Jantar Mantar are hounded by the police as well as........

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