Realising that his struggles meant nothing to his Marxist brothers, he moved on further left
That was some years ago
Rohit took the blow and like any good fighter
Used the blow to become stronger
Somewhere though, the death had set in
A young Marxist was forced to become a young Dalit Marxist
the world of universities and learning, could not free him from caste suppression
They pushed him deeper into it
Yes, the first blow came from his comrades
The second blow came from the nation
Caste is history they said
Some even said, caste was the culture of the nation
Yet they believed that talking about caste now destroys the nation
Rohit loved justice too
It is a sad one-sided love story
He and his friends felt that Yakub Menon did not get justice
They called some friends to talk about Yakub Menon and justice
A small band of boys, radical and isolated
A small band of boys with a one-sided love affair with justice
Easy to isolate and destroy
A strong South Asian powerhouse began flexing its muscles and nationalism
Such strength against a small band of boys
Dalit Marxists, with a one-sided love affair with justice
Yes the second blow came from the nation
The third blow might have come from us all
Poverty, hunger, pride loneliness and fire
Rohit must have remembered his old Marxist friends
There were many of them and in large numbers
They had all the organisation and structures
There were many love affairs they still shared
But they were still silent
Busy with their grand struggle against capitalism
many did connect
But, they too were isolated, few and sometimes far away
It is an absence of hope that leads to suicide
A complete absence of hope
Yes, the third blow might have come from us all
Rohit died but left behind a body that was so alive
Finally in death, maybe he just wanted to be
Just a student, bright, political, hounded by institutions;
a bright citizen who had to leave all hope
Yet in his death, he became more Dalit
His identity was further hounded
Rohit's fire touched many hearts
Many of his older Marxist friends came out on the streets
Marching and chanting
But they brought in their old battles
Fascism and capitalism won over Rohit again
The final (yet) flow came from his comrades
Even as his mother led an emotional candlelight march
Even as she was assaulted, arrested
The old Marxist friends stayed inside universities debating nationalism and capitalism
Yes, the final flow came from his comrades
His narrative does not suit their memory
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| The room where Rohith killed himself . (Source: Express photo by Harsha Vadlamani) - See more at: http://indianexpress.com/article/india/india-news-india/dalit-scholar-rohith-vemula-the-student-the-leader/#sthash.lMlEpZ9R.dpuf |
