Are you Anna or Ramdev?

Atma Prakash Nayak

Lecturer in English

“I speak of the public and for the public and that makes me a public speaker with some difference”, announced the stranger to a young man. To which the young man fired off a rejoinder, “I really regret that I have never heard your name among the well-known public speakers of my time.”

“You never know me because I am neither a leader nor a religious monk preaching morality. I am a banned speaker because I voice public opinion. This is a country where freedom of speech is accorded so long as you speak of scriptures. But when you voice criticism, objection or a genuine concern for the welfare of your state, you will be banned.” - replied the stranger.

“Are you Baba Ramdev or Anna Hazare? You are using their parlance.”- Asked the young man out of curiosity.

“No! Please don’t politicize me. I am just a common man with lots of dreams in my heart to realize. And I just want to breathe in FREEDOM in its real sense. But I cannot. Because till date young men like you prefer to ask -Are you Anna or Ramdev? - But they don’t show the guts to say -I am ANNA or I am RAMDEV”. – The stranger lapsed into a silence and looked into the distant sky.

The young man moved closer to the stranger and held the stranger’s hand firmly and proclaimed, “I am a young ANNA and I am born to usher true freedom in India.”

The sun was shining and the land looked all golden.