Mob-violence is emerging as a serious law and order problem in India. By giving suitable examples, analyze the causes and consequences of such violence.

Mob-lynchings and violence have become a new normal in India especially in the wake of a silent political class who has chosen to either turn a blind eye or render mere lip-service condemning such attacks. This has hollowed the primary role of the government gradually. The number of incidents has shown a marked rise since last year.
 
Causes and Effects:
 

  • Cow vigilantism: The mob-lynching due to cow slaughter has seen a recent high. The reason for the increase in a number of these incidents is the laxity shown by the government to criminalise the same. This has further reinforced the communal prejudice against the minority community which is already at the receiving end. Also, there is no stringent award of punishment which has given way to the perception of being acceptable to the government. Thus, normalisation of such barbaric acts on the pretext of religious ideologies is an expression of an incomplete democracy.
  • Demanding Quota: There is also a spate of protests and mobs turning violent to burn public and private property to bring the government to knees and accept the demands of reservation put forth. The pathology of these lies in the hollowness of political promises made by the elected representatives to attract votes. The masses who stand up to protest feel belied and deceived. They resort to violence as silent protests go unheard. In addition, the drag in the legal implementation of various laws to bring these people to task is a weak deterrent.
  • Violence on Ram Rahim verdict: This was another particular example of holding 3 states to ransom by a huge mass of people in protest of the conviction of their Guru, under latent impunity and patronage of the ruling government. There was extreme indifference shown by the ruling government by allowing such huge number of people to gather at one place.

Thus, all incidents are witness to state indifference and majoritarian denial of reality which breeds discontent and hatred against others. All such happenings are thus an absolute failure of government machinery and ineffectiveness of law and order thus reinforcing the belief that fanaticism is above law.
 
 

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