India is gearing up to celebrate its 78th Independence Day, which recalls the seamless sacrifices of our freedom fighters and the foundational values of independent India. Those visionary leaders ensured that equality, religious tolerance, and pluralism would be the bedrock of our democracy. Those who witnessed British rule knew that freedom would be meaningless without a governing constitutional order based on equality, social justice, and unity in diversity.

During their struggle against colonialism, our freedom fighters garnered unconditional support from their generation, promising a nation founded on these golden principles. Ironically, today, these principles are being blatantly violated by the ruling party, which thrives on divisive politics. Recent developments related to the Kanwar Yatra highlight a troubling trend targeting specific communities. The governments of Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand have ordered eateries along the Yatra route to display the names of their owners and employees, ostensibly to prevent confusion among pilgrims about food items that might violate their sacred conduct. This order, however, is a thinly veiled attempt at communal politics under the guise of maintaining law and order.

The Supreme Court wisely intervened, staying the order and asking eatery owners instead to declare the types of food they serve. The actions of these fascist forces threaten to endanger harmony and sow discord among communities. They must understand that while the Prime Minister projects India as a vibrant democracy on the world stage, it is unbecoming to erode our social fabric and sow seeds of hatred among citizens. They should remember the democratic ideals that freedom fighters and the framers of our constitution stood for, acknowledging that a nation is made up of its citizens above all else. This is what thousands of years of India’s civilisational history represent.

Aura’s August issue features a special analysis of the history of India’s freedom struggle. This history takes pride in upholding the values of diversity and inclusiveness while resisting intruders. Our readers will be delighted with articles on World Friendship Day and all our engaging regular columns.

As we celebrate Independence Day with great pomp and show, let us not forget the youngsters and activists who are jailed for courageously raising their voices against the fascist regime. Aura wishes its readers a very happy and meaningful Independence Day and also extends its solidarity to the many women who have been affected by this repression, including civil society activists & the family members of those incarcerated.