MUMBAI: Empathy for people and the desire to oppose the politics of hatred and violence are the driving forces that made her join politics, Urmila Matondkar, who is contesting the Mumbai North Lok Sabha constituency as a Congress candidate, has said.
“In a democracy, every citizen needs to do his or her bit. I too had decided to just join the party to fulfill my duty as a citizen. But, when the discussions advanced, the issue of contesting elections popped up, I accepted,” Matondkar said.
“We are currently living in an atmosphere of hatred and violence and I thought it is my responsibility to stand up. I shall stay in politics to fight this atmosphere whatever the outcome,” she added.
At least a couple of times over past week Matondkar met with mobs chanting slogans in order to demoralise her during her campaign meetings.
“I’m a supporter of freedom of expression and hence I won’t say anything against such sloganeering. But, what followed was terrifying. It took me to the police station for the first time in my life to seek protection. I was just shivering after people tried to disrupt our corner meeting,” she added, referring to a recent incident.
“Things like these contribute to the atmosphere of hatred. Trolling is a kind of violence, say on the psychological level,” she added.
“I’m standing against the people of hatred and people of negativity in a time when people have been killed because they were reformists, intellectuals,” she said while referring to killings of rationalist leaders Narendra Dabholkar, Govind Pansare and journalist Gauri Lankesh.
“We are living in a society driven by fear,” Matondkar said while reiterating strictures passed by the high court against CM Fadnavis for the lack of pace in probes of the Dabholkar-Pansare murder cases.
Matondkar has shifted from the upscale locality of Juhu to Kandivali to be close to the people she wants to represent. While the opposition has been trying to portray her as someone not connected to the common people, she responds saying it is her empathy for the people which has brought her closer.
“I don’t discuss the issue of Rafale in slums,” Matondkar said, adding, “slum dwellers have to take on every day, just for survival. It is more important than issues like Rafale. She took on her opponents citing local issues in the constituency.
Some of the major issues of the constituency are housing, a scarcity of water and sanitation.