A collective failure
It was first of the several incidents which made us hang our heads in shame. A tribal from Odisha, Dana Majhi, was forced to walk 10 km with his wife’s body on his shoulder, and his weeping 12-year-old daughter by his side. He was forced to undertake this ordeal as he had no vehicle to take home his wife's body after she died of tuberculosis at a government hospital in Kalahandi. According to him, he no one helped him out with a vehicle or ambulance, though he pleaded for one.
If it was Aylan Kurdi in 2015, it was Omran Daqneesh in 2016. In this frame grab taken from video provided by the Syrian anti-government activist group Aleppo Media Center (AMC), 5-year-old Omran sits in an ambulance after being pulled out of a building hit by an airstrike in Aleppo, Syria, on Aug. 17, 2016. The White Helmets were among the crowd of first responders who pulled Daqneesh and his family from the rubble of their apartment building.
Of attacks and counter-attacks
Perennially, India has been under attack from the neighbouring country. 2016 began with the brazen Pathankot attack. Heavily armed militants attacked the air force station. The subsequent combing operation lasted for about 17 hours resulting in death of five attackers and three security personnel.
Later, in September, in the worst attack on the Army in many years, heavily armed militants suspected to be from Pakistan-based JeM stormed an army base in Uri in Kashmir killing 17 jawans, prompting Prime Minister Narendra Modi to assert that those responsible “will not go unpunished”.
And accordingly, for the first time in several decades, India’s army crossed the Line of Control and launched surgical strikes on terrorist launch-pads in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir, killing terrorists. Later, stepping up diplomatic pressure on Pakistan, India refused to take part in the Saarc summit that was to be held in Islamabad in November. Other Saarc nations including Afghanistan too backed India.
Students script a new chapter
History is replete with incidents where the youth have led revolutions to bring change. In India, after a long, students power was in full display as JNU’s Kanhaiya Kumar and Rohith Vemula of University of Hyderabad tried to raise their voice against social injustice and made the entire nation sit up and take note of several issues.
Quite anti-social
Internet trolls kept the social media abuzz in 2016 and spared none -- be it Narendra Modi, Rahul Gandhi, cricketer Mohammad Shami or even ‘Saifeena’ -- unleashing posts and memes that ranged from controversial to hilarious to bizarre. Shami was attacked by trolls after he posted a picture with his wife Hasin Jahan, who was wearing a sleeveless gown.
They asked him to ensure that his wife is dressed modestly in a hijab. Similarly, Bollywood actors Kareena Kapoor and Saif Ali Khan came under fire from social media users over naming of their newborn son, Taimur.
Memes about Sonam Gupta also kept social media buzzing as users endlessly discussed whether she was 'bewafa' or not. It all started with a Rs 10 note on which someone had written 'Sonam Gupta bewafa hai'. Soon the picture went viral, catching the attention of trolls and spawning memes.
All was not well between Ravichandran Ashwin and Mahendra Singh Dhoni. So it seems after Captain Cool’s fans trolled the ICC Cricketer of the Year on social media for not thanking his ex-captain in a speech posted on the Indian Cricket Team’s Facebook page.
Women of substance
After 16 long years, human rights activist Irom Sharmila ended her fast demanding a repeal of AFSPA in Manipur. Now, she has launched a political party.
Bhumata Brigade chief Trupti Desai had earlier campaigned for the entry of women at the Shani Shingnapur, Trimbakeshwar Shiva temple and Haji Ali dargah.
The white wonder
All polls had written him off. But rank outsider Donald Trump proved the entire world wrong. He successfully tapped into the anger of middle-class White Americans to pull off a nearly impossible victory over his rival Hillary Clinton. Now, Trump towers for next four years. Are you game?
Similarly, finally Brexit too became a reality.
