August 15, Midnight

they waved the flag with pride
of no longer being second
to the white, who snatched
and stole, whose rule was
cold, who shot us down
like we were prey strolling
in the grass, who drew the line
on the sand, who made us kiss
their boots when they built
rail lines to loot, who made us
fight their wars and pay taxes
to fund the war, who caused riots
and starved us to death as we were
‘petty indian fools’ and they
the ‘english greats’.

Sutputra Radheye is a poet and commentator on themes affecting the socio-eco-political scenario. His works have been published on Frontier, Countercurrents, Janata Weekly, Culture Matters (UK) and other platforms.

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