TOPIC OF THE DAY:–
“Dangerous Rhetoric”
In the week since the final draft of the National Register of Citizens in Assam was completed, the political rhetorichas got irresponsibly away from the issue at hand. Those associated with the preparation of the NRC, including its Supreme Court-appointed coordinator, Prateek Hajela, are at pains to point out that the draft is by no means the end of the road. The more than 40 lakh people whose names are missing from the draft have a graded appeals process ahead, first at NRC seva kendras. Failing rehabilitation on the list at this stage, they can appeal to district magistrates, the Foreigners’ Tribunals, the Gauhati High Court and the Supreme Court. It is a long and dauntingprocess, and a mature polity would ensure that no man, woman or child is stranded without legal and other assistance to deal with the paperwork. Instead, a full-blown political spectacle has unfolded, with parties trivialising the complexity of the process. The president of the Bharatiya Janata Party, Amit Shah, has filled the air with challenges to Opposition parties, particularly the Congress, to spell out their stand on “Bangladeshi immigrants” and clarify if they want them “to stay here or evict them”. Sundry BJP leaders have talked in favour of an NRC in every State, giving a threatening denominational twist to the issue. And West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, seemingly as willing to court her own political constituency over the NRC draft list, has warned of a “bloodbath” and a “civil war”. There is a manifest lack of concern about those bracing themselves to go through the appeals process when one listens to a Telangana BJP MLA’s violent words, a Congressperson’s boasts about thousands of Bangladeshis deported on his party’s watch, or the TMC chief’s angry remarks. Each of those lakhs of persons who doesn’t find herself on the list is a human being, given to heaviness of heart at being left off a citizens’ list, wary of the process that lies ahead, and assailed by what-if scenarios. Among those on the list are people cutting across linguistic, ethnic and religious groups. Together, they do not fit the profile being conveyed by the dog-whistle politics of the BJP to sharpen its identity politics nationwide. In fact, Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal, of the BJP too, has implied as much, while counselling calm. Equally, the shrill politics at the national level is holding India back from facing the necessary questions: can it genuinely heed its civilisational legacy without issuing an assurance that nobody who has lived for a long time in this land will be renderedstateless? And that the country is confident of finding a way to close this process without disadvantaging those who will be off the eventual list and those on it?
MEANINGS AND WORD :-
1) Rhetoric
Meaning: The art of effective or persuasive speaking or writing, especially the exploitation of figures of speech and other compositional techniques.
Example: “he is using a common figure of rhetoric, hyperbole”
Synonyms: Diction, Delivery
2) Point out
Meaning: To tell someone about some information, often because you believe they do not know it or have forgotten it.
Example: He was planning to book a rock-climbing holiday, till I pointed out that Denis is afraid of heights.
3) Rehabilitation
Meaning: The action of restoring something that has been damaged to its former condition.
Example: “the rehabilitation of the mangrove forests”
4) Daunting
Meaning: Seeming difficult to deal with in prospect; intimidating.
Example: “a daunting task”
Synonyms: Formidable, Disconcerting
5) Stranded
Meaning: Leave (someone) without the means to move from somewhere.
Example: “two of the firm’s lorries are stranded in France”
6) Full-blown
Meaning: Fully developed.
Example: “the onset of full-blown AIDS in persons infected with HIV”
Synonyms: Advanced, Full-scale
Antonyms: Partial
7) Spectacle
Meaning: A visually striking performance or display.
Example: “the acrobatic feats make a good spectacle”
Synonyms: Display, Show
8) Trivialising
Meaning: Make (something) seem less important, significant, or complex than it really is.
Example: “the problem was either trivialized or ignored by teachers”
Synonyms: Minimize, Dismiss
9) Spell out
Meaning: To explain something in a very clear way with details.
Example: The government has so far refused to spell out its plans/policies.
Synonyms: Defining, Explain
10) Threatening
Meaning: Having a hostile or deliberately frightening quality or manner.
Example: “her mother had received a threatening letter”
Synonyms: Menacing, Alarming
11) Manifest
Meaning: Clear or obvious to the eye or mind.
Example: “her manifest charm and proven ability”
Synonyms: Obvious, Clear
Antonyms: Hidden, Secret
12) Bracing
Meaning: Prepare (someone) for something difficult or unpleasant.
Example: “both stations are bracing themselves for job losses”
Synonyms: Prepare, Bolster
13) Heaviness
Meaning: A mentally oppressive feeling, especially of sadness or grief.
Example: “he felt the heaviness of loss as he watched her go”
14) Assailed
Meaning: (of an unpleasant feeling or physical sensation) come upon (someone) suddenly and strongly.
Example: “she was assailed by doubts and regrets”Synonyms:
Antonyms: Disturb, Worry
15) Linguistic
Meaning: Relating to language or linguistics.
Example: “a child’s linguistic ability”
Synonyms: Semantic, Lingual
16) Ethnic
Meaning: Relating to a population subgroup (within a larger or dominant national or cultural group) with a common national or cultural tradition.
Example: “ethnic and cultural rights and traditions”
Synonyms: Racial, Genetic
17) Dog-whistle
Meaning: A remark, speech, advertisement, etc. by a politician that is intended to be understood by a particular group, especially one with feelings of racism or hatred, without actually expressing these feelings.
Example: Attacks on “political correctness” can be a dog whistle to rally white voters.
18) Shrill
Meaning: Used to describe a way of arguing or criticizing that seems too forceful.
Example: He launched a shrill attack on the prime minister.
19) Heed
Meaning: Pay attention to; take notice of.
Example: “he should have heeded the warnings”
Synonyms: Notice, Note
Antonyms: Disregard
20) Rendered
Meaning: Give up; surrender.
Example: “he will render up his immortal soul”
Synonyms: Return, Repay
