Why a disabled person was assaulted in an Indian cinema

A disability activist who uses a wheelchair was assaulted in India for not standing up to the national anthem being played in a cinema. The incident triggered outrage over what many say is the rise of aggressive nationalism in the country. Salil Chaturvedi, who has been using a wheelchair since 1984, recounts the incident that left him shaken.



...But just before the movie begins the national anthem is played and everyone in the hall stands up. It's one of those moments when I feel a bit singled out since I am the only one sitting. It's an unsettling kind of feeling, as if one is not participating, somehow alienated.
I can hear a couple behind me singing the anthem loudly and with obvious pride. I pay attention to their singing, admiring their passion.

Suddenly I get a rude whack on my head from behind. I flip my head back and the man gestures for me to stand up. Stunned, I turn back to the screen and wait for the national anthem to get over. I should be feeling rage, I think to myself, but my hands begin to shake with nervousness.

When the anthem ends I turn around in my seat and address the man - "Why don't you just relax in life?"

"You can't even stand up for the national anthem?" his partner screams at me.

"Look, you don't even know the story here," I say. "You should just learn to relax a little in life. Why do you have to get physical and hit people?"

Monika is watching this with surprise wondering what's going on. My friend is also clueless about what has just happened.

"Did you just hit my husband?" she shouts....

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-37749247