Why blame others when I myself have been so callous!

Where was I when justice was not served to those who died in the 1993 bomb blasts
Where was my voice when the train blasts took place in 2005 and our forces were not capable of tracking the perpetuators
Where was I when they tried dividing me on my religion and place of residence

Where was I when the politicians knocked on my door for votes and I avoided going to polls
Where was I when criminals were appointed as MLA’s & MLC’s for elections
Why did I turn a Blind eye when they gave money for votes

Why did I let them bully others at gunpoint to cast votes in their favour
Where is my voice when I know the roads I travel might cripples someone’s back
Where is my voice when the lights go out of my house, coz my taxes are meant for those who default on payments

Why did I not raise my voice against the injustice being perpeteated
Why am I not conscious that the common man’s back is broken awaiting justice from the courts
Where was I when judiciary stands in defence of criminals coz it say a man is not guilty till proven by law

Why do I tolerate to hear that you have to bribe someone to get justice in court
Why do I tolerate the fact that some among the judiciary is corrupt
Where is my voice when the industrialist bribes bureaucrats to get his work done

Where is my voice when he grabs others land to sow his vision of tomorrow
Where is my voice when they pollute the atmosphere and I turn a blind eye
This nation does not need leaders, it needs each of us to be shaken from our stupor

What’s inked in the constitution is forgotten by those who uphold the offices and our so called people’s representatives
We have all taken the freedom fought for by our forefather’s as a granted thing

Maybe all we need is another freedom movement, to cure the evil from within
To the forefront has to come leaders in the form of those educated people who give sermons living in their glass houses but are not willing to sacrifice their comforts as long as it does not scar them.

By- Nidhi Sidharthan