The celebrations of the Republic over a week ago did not make questions about the republic with the small “r” recede. AdvertisementWhere was the republic when an FIR was filed in Moradabad last month under the stringent anti-conversion law against five Muslim girls, students of Class XII? This was after CCTV footage showed them, on their way back from coaching class, putting a burqa on a Hindu friend, playfully. Rahul Gandhi’s silence on the FIR against the Class XII students in Moradabad is of a piece with Congress leaders’ conspicuous absences, including at Shaheen Bagh. On this teeming ground, you strain your ears to catch any sound of the republic.

Source: Indian Express February 04, 2026 01:16 UTC