THE EMPURAAN ENIGMA: THE IDEOLOGY AND POLARIZING IMPACT

The Indian civilized society has on many occasions witnessed infringement of Fundamental
Rights assured and guaranteed by the the Constitution of India. Articles 19 and 21 have now
become only a vain assurance with no guarantee as many Political Prisoners and Human Rights
activists are still on their fights for the protection of their Basic Rights.

Article 19(1)(a) of the Indian Constitution assures and guarantees freedom of speech and expression to all citizens,
which includes the freedom of the press, allowing individuals to express their views and opinions
freely through various media, including writing and publishing while Article 21 of the Indian
Constitution guarantees the fundamental right to life and personal liberty, stating that no person
shall be deprived of his/her life or personal liberty except according to the procedure established
by law. Patriotism and Anti-Patriotism have been redefined with a view to save and protect
fascists and to annihilate their political dissidents and true patriots. Open rejection and public
abuses against the preamble to the constitution of India and Mahatma Gandhi are termed as
Patriotism, but raising slogans or arguments for the enforcement of fundamental rights has been
termed as Anti-Patriotism.

Recently a controversy in connection with an Indian Malayalam-language film, 'Empuraan'
directed by Prithviraj Sukumaran and written by Murali Gopi has been created. It is the sequel to
the 2019 film Lucifer and is also the second instalment in the Lucifer trilogy. The release of the
film has created controversies, for certain scenes in the film reflect the 2002 Gujarat riots, also
known as the 2002 Gujarat violence. It was a three-day period of inter-communal violence in
Gujarat consequent to the burning of a train in Godhra on 27 February 2002. consequently
thousands of innocent people had been massacred. A pregnant Muslim lady named Bilkis
Bano, along with her mother and three other women, was gang-raped by eleven terrorist
fanatics. The communal violence at Naroda was deemed "the largest single case of mass
murder" during the 2002 Gujarat riots. It accounted for the greatest number of deaths during a
single event.

The Naroda Patiya massacre took place on 28 February 2002 at Naroda in Ahmedabad, India,
during the 2002 Gujarat riots. The massacre at Naroda occurred during the bandh called by
Viswa Hindu Parishad a day after the Godhra train burning.The riot lasted over 10 hours, during
which the mob plundered, stabbed, sexually assaulted, gang-raped and burnt people
individually and in groups. According to official figures, the riots ended with 1,044 dead, 223
missing, and 2,500 injured. Of the dead, 790 were Muslim and 254 Hindu. The Concerned
Citizens Tribunal Report estimated that as many as 1,926 may have been killed. Other sources
estimated death tolls in excess of 2,000. Many brutal killings and rapes were reported on as well
as widespread looting and destruction of property.

The then Chief Minister, Narendra Modi, was accused of condoning the violence, as were police and government officials who allegedly
directed the rioters and gave lists of Muslim-owned properties to them. Attackers arrived in
Muslim communities across the region in trucks, wearing saffron robes and khaki shorts, bearing
a variety of weapons. In many cases, attackers damaged or burned Muslim-owned or occupied
buildings while leaving adjacent Hindu buildings untouched. Although many calls to the police
were made from victims, they were told by the police that "we have no orders to save you."
Instead the police fired on Muslims who attempted to defend themselves. The rioters used
mobile phones to coordinate their attacks. It was, in short, a terrible and horrible violence. It is
estimated that 230 mosques and 274 dargahs were destroyed during the violence. It is
estimated that up to 150,000 people were displaced during the violence.

The film has to a certain extent succeeded in bringing the some of the terrible incidents to the
attention of its viewers. Children were killed by being burnt alive and those who dug the mass
graves described the bodies interred within them as "burned and butchered beyond
recognition." Children and infants were speared and held aloft before being thrown into fires.
Describing the sexual violence perpetrated against Muslim women and girls, it was written that it

"consisted of forced nudity, mass rapes, gang-rapes, mutilation, insertion of objects into bodies,
cutting of breasts, slitting the stomach and reproductive organs, and carving of Hindu religious
symbols on women's body parts." It is still widely alleged that state government authorities were
involved and various police personnel played a role in the massacre: a number of eyewitnesses
reported police officers favouring the mob by allegedly injuring or killing Muslims and damaging
public and private property. Many police officers and officials had subsequently turned against
the state machinery and revealed the truth behind the violence that had led to certain diplomatic
decisions taken by the US and UK governments, and accordingly VISA was denied to
Mr.Narendra Modi who was for a long time disallowed to enter America and Britain. However,
none of the allegations were proven and the government and police were cleared of wrongdoing
by a Special Investigation Team. The film, 'Empuraan' through its release again reminds its
viewers of the terrorist attacks that took place in Gujarat in 2002.

The Movie has now become an issue that has been widely politicized through which the Ruling Classes
have got ample opportunities and relief to run away from the real issues and problems faced by the
people. The unreasonable hike in the prices of fuel, gas, food items, migration of lakhs of our youth to
foreign countries for the safety of their future and protection etc are forgotten. The concession of Senior
citizens for their railway journey, subsidy for domestic gas etc are tactfully cancelled, and no political
party has taken up such issues for a debate or discussion. The fact that the film references one of
the most brutal genocides the country has, no doubt, angered the Saffronized Groups. The
same issues and controversies had been created when the film, 'Kerala Story', was released. It
is fully accepted and respected that freedom of expression of a citizen must be protected in a
democratic society. Violent calls to destroy and ban artwork and writings are the manifestations
of fascist attitudes. They are a violation of democratic rights.

But the controversial film should not be the concern of the general public. But on the contrary, it
is the high time to raise the problems directly affecting the tax paying laymen. The
unreasonable hike in the prices of food items, domestic gas, Petrol etc are inexcusable. The
railway concession given to senior citizens for their train journey and the subsidy provided for
domestic gas etc have been cancelled. Poor tax paying voters should realize and remember
that Indian banks have written off bad loans of the billionaires and corporate totaling Rs.14.56
lakh crore over the past nine financial years, starting from 2014-15. If a poor farmer or labourer
has any liability to pay Rs.1000/, it will be recovered with interests and costs from him. More
than 1.3 million Indian students have migrated to various foreign countries for the protection of
their future in 2024. 2.5 lakhs students from Kerala have left India in 2023 leaving their aged
parents alone. If the Political bureaucracy provides employment facilities for the youth, they will
settle in our country. They Indian Youngsters are indebted to foreign countries for the safety of
their future. These are the fundamental problems being faced poor tax paying citizens of India. It
must be the concern of the laymen for discussion and debate. The ruling classes will always
create and raise communal problems or controversies with a view to divert the attention of the
people from the real problems in order to run their ruling machinery without any objection or
resistance from any corner.

In a nutshell, the twin challenges of uncontrolled price hikes and unemployment pose a
formidable threat and a challenge to the well-being and welfare of the Indian citizens. It is
therefore imperative that we should prioritize the main issues and fundamental problems and
demand effective solutions from the Ruling classes, failing which India will be a geriatric asylum
craving for justice in future.