Poetry at Sangam
Poetry at Sangam showcases poetry in English and translations as well as essays on poetics and news of new releases.
Heavy boots on the legs of iron
a gun dangling by its shoulder
the law will take its course.
And by en-shackling all the hands
will thrash them by all force
towards the jail
via the labour and the thought
dividing the yield from the labour.
Segregating things,
and placing them
in predecided places;
For example, a criminal in
the place of a judge, wrong for right
and the capitalist in the place of the ruler.
The law will tread
by the speed of a bullet on the labour class
by the speed of famine on the farmers
and on the tongue of dissent
it will run like a knife.
The law will give no explanation
for the spilling blood
It will be said the explanation is
beyond the scope of law.
And within no time
in our sights and in our dreams
It will make itself home as fear.
In the name of the nation,
it will detain the people.
In the name of people
it will sell the nation.
In the name of security
It will make you unsecured.
If it knocks on your door
in the middle of the night
then know you are done for.
In the news, they will say
it was an encounter.
Born of the womb of ownership
it will be debated
in parliaments and in courts
glistened by the golden polish of
a lie.
the law will run
on the legs of iron
with all the force
till you break.
‘Kanoon’ (Hindi) by Gorakh Pandey, translated by Abdur Rehman Khan
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