Daijiworld Media Network – Mangalore (MM)
Pics: Prajwal Ukkuda
Mangalore, Feb 26: “Caste and religion are playing a big role in today’s elections. If religion is mixed with politics, India has no future," said well-known thinker and senior counsel of Karnataka High court Ravivarma Kumar.
Speaking at the inaugural ceremony ‘Samprathi,’ annual seminar about ‘Civil Society: Conscience-keeper of the Nation’ organized by St Aloysius College of Social Work on Tuesday February 26, he stated that, youth have to play very important role in promoting and nurturing democracy this year since assembly elections are slated to be held in the second half of the year.
Some mine operators have asked a political party to manage assembly elections this time in 8 states, from selection of a candidate to the victory of that candidate. These mine owners decided to give a bribe of Rs 500 per vote and to purchase it. Therefore, civil society has to play a major role in preserving democracy to avoid such a big malpractice, he called for.
“We obey the traffic rules only if traffic police are on the spot. Once we give bribe, we start receiving bribe and we say bribe is everywhere. Whatever the situation around us may be, however influential it might be, we should allow ourselves to be part of corruption, casteism and untouchability,” he advised.
A total of 29,000 villages in the state have 30,000 hamlets which provide labourers and these hamlets have a separate ethnic identity. Nobody has taken initiatives to include these hamlets in the villages. Therefore, the civil society has to raise its voice against castiesm and untouchability. If not, casteism, communalism, untouchability and corruption will take over the society and ruin the future of our next generation, he cautioned.
Fr Francis Serrao, rector of St Aloysius institutions, presided over the function. Fr Swebert D’Silva, principal of the college, Prof Valerian Rodrigues of Jawaharlal National University and student coordinator Jyothi were present on the dais.
Loveena Lobo welcomed the gathering. Ida D’Souza delivered the introductory remarks.