'It's amazing that a country that claims to be the world's largest democracy is getting into the business of micro-regulating personal and professional lives in this fashion,' says Devangshu Datta.
There's an old joke about a madman obsessively banging his head against a wall. When a bystander asks why, the madman responds, 'It'll feel so good when I stop doing it.'
Demonetisation was like that.
Months of pain and privation gradually eased, as cash came back into the system.
There was immense relief as one could indulge in the civilised niceties of tipping the bellboy at a hotel, or simply eat an ice cream on the street.
This process of pain followed by cessation leads to 'normalisation': People are gradually trained to endure situations they would have previously considered unacceptable.
Last month, for instance, ATMs across the country ran dry. If this had happened prior to November 8, 2016, there would have raucous complaints.
Now, there are just a few mutters and grumbles. Welcome to normalisation.
Looking back, the past three years have seen an amazing amount of such normalisation.
There was uproar over 'Ghar Wapsi' in 2014, which translated to couples being harassed in public by mobs.
Back in 2015, there was uproar when a man was lynched by a mob in Dadri for allegedly eating beef.
The prime minister even bestirred himself to make a speech (many, many months after the Dadri incident), condemning the concept of cow-vigilantism.
Two years later, vigilante mobs are roaming around several states. Several persons have been lynched for random reasons supposedly involving bovines. 'Anti-Romeo' mobs have thrashed and publicly humiliated young couples.
Meanwhile the PM is emulating his illustrious predecessor in that post and maintaining a dignified silence about mob rule.
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