This one is for Teesta – Salil Tripathi

#BraveTeesta


Teesta Setalvad
This one is for Teesta – and other stubborn souls trying to keep India the way it was meant to be:
First they went after Sanjiv Bhatt 
But I said nothing because I wasn’t a cop.
Then the witnesses in Asaram’s case started dropping dead
But I said nothing because I wasn’t a fan of any guru-buru.
Then the witnesses of Vyapam case started falling one by one
And I said nothing because I didn’t live in Madhya Pradesh.
Then they released Maya Kodnani on bail
And I said nothing because that woman did no harm to me.
Then they tried withdrawing cases against Hindus accused of bomb blasts,
And I said nothing because Hindus are non-violent, so why should they be prosecuted?
Then they banned beef in the state,
And I said nothing because red meat is bad for health anyway.
Then they started shouting “ghar wapsi,”
And I thought they are cheering the Prime Minister on his occasional visits back home to India.
Then they froze the accounts of Greenpeace
But I thought that shouldn’t matter, after all India has to develop, no, and doesn’t Greenpeace stop all development?
Then they stopped Priya Pillai from boarding a flight
And I thought, come on, why does she have to go to a British parliament to speak against India?
Then they tried to arrest Teesta Setalvad,
But I ignored that – the Supreme Court made sure nothing would happen to her, so why should we care?
Then they raided Teesta’s home
And I thought, maybe she had something to hide, otherwise why wouldn’t she disclose everything?
Some day, they say, they’ll come for me.
That’s ridiculous; India is the world’s largest democracy.
It is not some banana republic.
I pay my taxes;
I have my aadhaar card;
I even do yoga.
But if they do come, will you speak up for me?

 http://hillele.org/2015/07/16/this-one-is-for-teesta-salil-tripathi/