Cool breeze touching us every moment, telling, it’s the time to celebrate. Boundless sky crammed with multi color flying and floating kites, heartening the environment. Delightful and exciting voices breaking the silence and enhancing thrill in the reckless hearts.
Suddenly, an unexpected and piercing scream is heard, that stuns everyone. Someone just met an accident while looting a kite on the road – some freeze, silently but furiously watching the accident, but a few rush to save him … “he is bleeding”, “let’s take him to the hospital”, “No! It might become a police case”, “he is badly injured, I hope he doesn’t die”, “I don’t understand why these boys risk their lives for a kite worth a few rupees” ... an utterance from the crowd, breaking the silence -- then a voice was heard, “Wait! I will take him to the hospital -- Stop the rickshaw”. The next day’s highlight – “Hundreds injured and 150 Killed on Basant while looting”.
This is just one incident but there are many others, such as road accidents, people falling from the top floor of a building, motorcyclists and pedestrians getting seriously injured by the dor, many get injured or killed by the bullets fired by inhabitants expressing their victory and electric breakdowns destroying millions of the expensive equipment.
Basant is a festival that has roots in the sub-continent, where Hindus and Muslims lived together for centuries and shared somewhat analogous culture. A cultural heritage that is inherited in our society too, which is celebrated lavishly in every economic sector, participated by all the genders with great enthusiasm. There is a myth about Basant, that it’s the part of Hindu culture but it’s not true. There is nothing Hindu or unislamic about Basant.
Basant festival has grown enormously in the recent years. Though it has boosted the economy of the country immensely as now it is celebrated at the national level, but at the same time many rule have been violated by the citizens just for the sake of fun.
Entertainment remains pleasurable as long as it gratifies us, but as soon as security is threatened by it, it looses its charm. When we don’t feel responsible towards our acts and play unsafe and carry out immoral activities like mujras and drinking alcohol, then it is the time for the authorities to wake up and clutch the rein of the public firmly, in order to remind them of their limits.
Basant is not unislamic but the way it is celebrated these days is highly objectionable. While talking about such issues, the attitude of the majority matters and unfortunately the majority of the citizens are not guilty of their immorality. Millions of rupees are spent on something that is known as just a “festival”, when at the same time poor is suffering from hunger. People spend so much on this one function that is equivalent to a one lavish marriage ceremony.
At the end of the day, I stop and think for a moment … that people have so much money to spend on a festival that would not get them anything more than “one whole day celebration and fun”. Hence, I calculate what we have lost and what we have gained? We spent money to gain entertainment at the cost of public assets and last but not the least, innocent lives.
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