Attack on Humayun Azad

The assailants, who have committed a dastardly crime, are yet to be identified. But it is not difficult to guess who they could be. Obviously, ordinary criminals could not have any stake in liquidating an intellectual known for his very original views. The attack, one is forced to conclude, can be traced to some ideological origin. And there is no doubt that political intolerance, which we witness these days with much trepidation, was the driving force behind it. The victim might have exposed himself to the fury of obscurantism or fanaticism through his write-ups. Unfortunately, there was none to alert him to the impending danger. The life of an intellectual appears to be a trifling thing that nobody cares about.

Intellectuals have been intimidated, harassed or even jailed. But this attack is unprecedented, which can only bring disgrace to the law enforcement system as a whole. What can we expect from it when the life of a peace-loving teacher is not safe?

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The home ministry has reacted the way it was expected to. There is assurance that the culprits will be brought to justice. The sad truth, however, is that very few of them have been brought to justice in recent times, despite the unusual surge in criminal activities. We hope the law enforcers will succeed this time around, but the nation must not lose sight of some glaring truths which have a great bearing on such criminal activities. There is an ever growing intolerance and tendency to deny the intellectuals the space that they need to bring their creative ideas into full play. Professor Azad might have been looking for that space all his life and what a price he has been made to pay for being a free thinker!

It has been an attack on not only an individual but also the whole enterprise of intellectual freedom. The attack should be a wake-up call to the truth that obscurantism has cast its ominous shadow on society and also that intellectual freedom is its first target.