When flatterers are favoured, hard work ignored, honest opinion isn't respected

By Deepika*
George Orwell’s “Animal Farm” is one book which had escaped my attention until a few years back when a friend recommended a read. At any period, it seems apt to revisit the short summary I had penned back in 2014/2015. "Animal Farm" is a timeless piece...

***

Animal Farm is the very familiar setting of any society, a race, or a creed who after being oppressed for long enough decide to fight against the odds. A leader or a group of leaders, visionaries come to the rescue and the common man believe in these new set of leaders and a movement takes place.

So happened in Animal Farm where inspired by Old Major, two pigs Snowball and Napoleon rise to the occasion and spend time, effort, energy and thought; and revolt against their human master Mr. Jones ultimately chasing him away! The new breed are full of hope, hope for the future and with their enthusiasm are capable of turning dreams into reality. They succeed initially and with a bit of beginner’s luck and support are actually able to make progress.

But power corrupts and has corrupted generations and Animal Farm was no exception. Napoleon in his arrogance, pride and some bit of insecurity plots a story against Snowball, eliminates his political rival very cleverly and spreads all sorts of rumours and lies. The followers are left in a state of confusion, fear and not able to decide right from wrong.

Sometimes they trust blindly and sometimes in a state of helplessness. This goes on and on and hardly does anybody realize that the original values have been compromised for, the trust has been misplaced and self-interest has taken a priority over everything else. The initial commandments are abridged to just one phrase:

“All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others".

So Napoleon of Animal Farm has not only managed to dismiss Snowball from the followers’ memories but in his arrogance has taken the role of a dictator. He enters into partnership with his original rivals, for this game of politics and power is such that one becomes his/her own slave, distinguishing between what one is, to what one was and what is right is clouded.

Benefits take precedence and values take a back seat. Flatterers are favored, hard work is ignored and those little struggles are banished. Honest opinion and sincerity are not respected, not appreciated and the honest die their natural death. So, no care was taken when the hard worker Boxer was sick and eventually gets killed.

“It had become usual to give Napoleon the Credit for every Successful achievement and every stroke of good fortune. You would often hear one hen remark to another, 'Under the guidance of our leader, Comrade Napoleon, I have laid five eggs in six days' or two cows, enjoying a drink at the pool, would exclaim, 'thanks to the leadership of Comrade Napoleon, how excellent this water tastes!'"

The onlookers watch in silence!

But nothing lasts forever and in the battle for power, no one wins and at the end one can’t just distinguish between who was what!

“The creatures outside looked from pig to man, and from man to pig, and from pig to man again; but already it was impossible to say which was which.”

---

*Digital marketing and content management professional with keen interest in public health policies

Comments

Stronger India–Russia partnership highlights a missed energy breakthrough

By N.S. Venkataraman* The recent visit of Russian President Vladimir Putin to India was widely publicized across several countries and has attracted significant global attention. The warmth with which Mr. Putin was received by Prime Minister Narendra Modi was particularly noted, prompting policy planners worldwide to examine the implications of this cordial relationship for the global economy and political climate. India–Russia relations have stood on a strong foundation for decades and have consistently withstood geopolitical shifts. This is in marked contrast to India’s ties with the United States, which have experienced fluctuations under different U.S. administrations.

From natural farming to fair prices: Young entrepreneurs show a new path

By Bharat Dogra There have been frequent debates on agro-business companies not showing adequate concern for the livelihoods of small farmers. Farmers’ unions have often protested—generally with good reason—that while they do not receive fair returns despite high risks and hard work, corporate interests that merely process the crops produced by farmers earn disproportionately high profits. Hence, there is a growing demand for alternative models of agro-business development that demonstrate genuine commitment to protecting farmer livelihoods.

The Vande Mataram debate and the politics of manufactured controversy

By Vidya Bhushan Rawat* The recent Vande Mataram debate in Parliament was never meant to foster genuine dialogue. Each political party spoke past the other, addressing its own constituency, ensuring that clips went viral rather than contributing to meaningful deliberation. The objective was clear: to construct a Hindutva narrative ahead of the Bengal elections. Predictably, the Lok Sabha will likely expunge the opposition’s “controversial” remarks while retaining blatant inaccuracies voiced by ministers and ruling-party members. The BJP has mastered the art of inserting distortions into parliamentary records to provide them with a veneer of historical legitimacy.

A comrade in culture and controversy: Yao Wenyuan’s revolutionary legacy

By Harsh Thakor* This year marks two important anniversaries in Chinese revolutionary history—the 20th death anniversary of Yao Wenyuan, and the 50th anniversary of his seminal essay "On the Social Basis of the Lin Biao Anti-Party Clique". These milestones invite reflection on the man whose pen ignited the first sparks of the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution and whose sharp ideological interventions left an indelible imprint on the political and cultural landscape of socialist China.

Thota Sitaramaiah: An internal pillar of an underground organisation

By Harsh Thakor* Thota Sitaramaiah was regarded within his circles as an example of the many individuals whose work in various underground movements remained largely unknown to the wider public. While some leaders become visible through organisational roles or media attention, many others contribute quietly, without public recognition. Sitaramaiah was considered one such figure. He passed away on December 8, 2025, at the age of 65.

Epic war against caste system is constitutional responsibility of elected government

Edited by well-known Gujarat Dalit rights leader Martin Macwan, the book, “Bhed-Bharat: An Account of Injustice and Atrocities on Dalits and Adivasis (2014-18)” (available in English and Gujarati*) is a selection of news articles on Dalits and Adivasis (2014-2018) published by Dalit Shakti Prakashan, Ahmedabad. Preface to the book, in which Macwan seeks to answer key questions on why the book is needed today: *** The thought of compiling a book on atrocities on Dalits and thus present an overall Indian picture had occurred to me a long time ago. Absence of such a comprehensive picture is a major reason for a weak social and political consciousness among Dalits as well as non-Dalits. But gradually the idea took a different form. I found that lay readers don’t understand numbers and don’t like to read well-researched articles. The best way to reach out to them was storytelling. As I started writing in Gujarati and sharing the idea of the book with my friends, it occurred to me that while...

New RTI draft rules inspired by citizen-unfriendly, overtly bureaucratic approach

By Venkatesh Nayak* The Department of Personnel and Training , Government of India has invited comments on a new set of Draft Rules (available in English only) to implement The Right to Information Act, 2005 . The RTI Rules were last amended in 2012 after a long period of consultation with various stakeholders. The Government’s move to put the draft RTI Rules out for people’s comments and suggestions for change is a welcome continuation of the tradition of public consultation. Positive aspects of the Draft RTI Rules While 60-65% of the Draft RTI Rules repeat the content of the 2012 RTI Rules, some new aspects deserve appreciation as they clarify the manner of implementation of key provisions of the RTI Act. These are: Provisions for dealing with non-compliance of the orders and directives of the Central Information Commission (CIC) by public authorities- this was missing in the 2012 RTI Rules. Non-compliance is increasingly becoming a major problem- two of my non-compliance cases are...

Proposals for Babri Masjid, Ram Temple spark fears of polarisation before West Bengal polls

By A Representative A political debate has emerged in West Bengal following recent announcements about plans for new religious structures in Murshidabad district, including a proposed mosque to be named Babri Masjid and a separate announcement by a BJP leader regarding the construction of a Ram temple in another location within Behrampur.

Global LNG boom 'threatens climate goals': Banks urged to end financing

By A Representative The world is on the brink of an unprecedented surge in Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) development, with 279 new projects planned globally, threatening to derail international climate goals and causing severe local impacts. This stark warning comes from a coalition of organizations—including Reclaim Finance, Rainforest Action Network, BankTrack, and others—that today launched the " Exit LNG " website, a new mapping project exposing the extent of the expansion, the companies involved, and their bank financiers.

Search This Blog