35)A Republic of Inhospitality
India Republic Day -- While India celebrates Republic Morning and the chests of numerous Indians swell with delight at the thought of our immens e diversity and imagined navy prowess it is well to reflect on what kind of Republic the has become. A republican type of government is not merely one in which the head of state is not a hereditary monarch; rather the modern republic puts on the idea that sovereignty resides from the people and that the will of the people as expressed through their representatives is supreme. Exactly what has however been important to the idea of the republic everywhere is the notion associated with inclusiveness. In this respect the reports that have been coming out of India in recent years tell a tale that is chill to the bones a tale which leaves behind a stench which no amount of sloganeering regarding Swachh Bharat or even anything more than a symbolic wielding of the broom can eradicate. In case inclusiveness is the touchstone of any Republic what i...