After reading today’s morning news about Jantar Mantar, I was in deep thought about what is going on, why the government is not listening. What is the Role of Youth and Peaceful Protest in Democracy? The government should learn and stop passing the ball; learn to take accountability, Not Deflection. Set right meaningful examples for the new generation.
When you look at the streets today—at Jantar Mantar and across student hubs—it is hard not to feel a deep sense of sadness and frustration. Thousands of young students, who have poured years of sleepless nights, sacrifices, and dreams into preparing for competitive exams like NEET, are standing on the roads asking for basic fairness. Alongside them, voices like Sonam Wangchuk fast for democratic rights and environmental protection. These are not unreasonable demands; they are legitimate, well-structured, and deeply felt.
Yet, instead of receiving open dialogue, empathy, and immediate reform, what is the official narrative we hear? Deflection. Blaming “fake Pakistani accounts,” pointing fingers at past administrations, or attributing widespread public dissatisfaction to external conspiracies.
As citizens watching this unfold, one simple question arises: When will this government take responsibility?
The Ego of Power vs. The Voice of the Youth
What started as straightforward, valid grievances over exam paper leaks and institutional oversights was allowed to escalate into a massive national protest. Why? Because instead of lowering their guard, listening to students, and guiding them, those in power let ego dictate their response.
When a government refuses to address genuine problems early on, it creates a pressure cooker. When you ignore your own people, you create the very instability you later complain about. It is an obvious reality in geopolitical strategy: every adversary looks for internal weakness. If external actors or fake accounts are leveraging these protests today, who gave them that opportunity? The answer is clear: the administration gave them that opening by failing to resolve internal grievances swiftly and transparently.
To constantly pass the ball to the opponent’s court—to blame external bots, foreign interference, or past mistakes—is an admission of administrative failure. In a government now serving its third consecutive term, claiming “we are not responsible” no longer holds water. This generation of students has grown up under this leadership; they are looking at current actions, not speeches about the past.
Gen Z: The Unburdened Future of Bharat
There is a fundamental misunderstanding of who today’s protesting youth are. This is Gen Z—a generation born free, educated, smart, and globally aware. They do not carry the political baggage of previous decades. They do not accept the colonial mindset where civil servants or elected officials act like “masters” (maalik) while citizens act as subordinates.
Look closely at how these young people are protesting. Their movements draw inspiration from Dr. B.R. Ambedkar’s constitutional vision and Mahatma Gandhi’s philosophy of peaceful resistance (Satyagraha). They are demonstrating true democratic spirit—peaceful, articulate, firm, and within the boundaries of the Constitution. They want to build their careers, contribute to the nation, and see a strong, transparent Bharat. They are not the enemies of the state; they are its future.
When bureaucracy operates under the fear of “what will the political masters say,” it reverts to British-era administrative tactics—suppression over dialogue, defense over accountability. But Gen Z expects modern, transparent governance, not archaic deflections.
Real “Nation First” Means Putting the Youth First
True leadership is not measured by speeches or claims of being “responsible”; it is measured by how a government acts when things go wrong. Systemic errors, paper leaks, and administrative lapses happen—acknowledging them and fixing them immediately is a mark of strength, not weakness.
If this administration truly believes in a “Nation First” ethos, that commitment must begin by putting the nation’s youth first.
- Listen without prejudice: Sit down with students and representatives without treating their demands as hostiles or political threats.
- Accept accountability: Take ownership of administrative failures, institute strict reforms, and ensure those responsible for paper leaks or oversights are held accountable—regardless of their position.
- Stop the narrative of deflection: Citizens are mature enough to distinguish between external propaganda and genuine internal failure. Blaming foreign accounts for home-grown administrative flaws undermines public trust.
The strength of a democracy lies in its ability to listen to its citizens, learn from mistakes, and reform. It is time for the governing leadership to show true maturity, step up to the mic, accept responsibility, and rebuild the trust of the very youth who will carry Bharat into the future.
News reference from Times of India; here, content might change because of its timeline: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/delhi/cjp-jantar-mantar-protests-live-updates-dharmendra-pradhan-resignation-sonam-wangchuk-ends-hunger-strike-abhijeet-dipke-jp-nadda-neet-paper-leak-latest-news/liveblog/132617555.cms