Haves and never-haves by birth

Returning to the palace after the deer-hunting expedition on a chariot driven by seven zebras, the king issued a controversial royal edict: "From now on, no expectant royal lady would be allowed to enjoy any pre- and post-natal care." The pronouncement caused a stir among the royal ladies of the family, particularly the daughters-in-law and married daughters that they wasted no time in consulting the queen consort and expressed their defying amazement at the pronouncement. The queen, though, looked unperturbed ostensibly, yet her mind was racing here, there and everywhere to locate what possible reason had prompted the king to take such a drastic decision.

In the bedchamber, the queen, instead of directly confronting the king on his shocking decree, argued politely with the king to know the precipitating factor. The king fulminated that during the hunting tour, he noticed some women of the families who sit below the salt and that there was slung something behind their back while they were snowed under with chores, errands and labour. He asked his wazir what those hanging things were. The wazir apprised the king that they were the newborn babies of those women. The poor women couldn't afford the long, restful lying-in as they had to carry on their daily work to shoulder the family finances.

The king told the queen that he had asked the wazir if those babies grew up as normal human beings. The wazir affirmed that they would become the king's loyal masses and brave warriors. If those women could resume their chores and labour soon after childbirth, why were the expectant women and mothers of the royal family lavished with royal privileges of rest and care? The queen smirked and wished the king sweet dreams.

After a few days, one day, the king felt like having a stroll in his royal gardens, but he went into a fit of fury upon seeing the unkempt seedbeds and wilting plants. The king sent for the royal gardeners and threatened them with dire consequences if proved guilty of the negligence of royal plants and flowers. But the gardeners were standing silent with their heads down and trembling with fear. On being prodded by the king repeatedly to divulge the reason or face the music, one senior gardener dared to speak after seeking the security of life if anything hurt the king. He pleaded not guilty because they obeyed the queen's orders of not tending the royal gardens any longer. The king was taken aback to hear that. He dismissed all and dashed towards the royal harem.

On seeing the irate king heading towards her, the queen dismissed all the royal ladies and maids and welcomed him. The king, fuming with anger, inquired the royal matriarch of why she had forbidden the gardeners from tending to the royal gardens. The queen asseverated that the royal flora could survive on their own like the wild plants in jungles do. The king huffed at the misplaced parallelism and argued that the plants in the royal gardens belonged to rare breeds and species and that they needed special care to ensure their growth and beauty, while the wild flora would only survive in the climes of jungle habitats; nature had built them to survive in their respective habitats. "It's not a matter of what's good for the goose is good for the gander," exclaimed the king to rest his case.

The queen stood in front of the king and spoke smilingly: "That's the point, my lord. The newborns of the royal family and the ones you saw outside the four walls of the palace can't be equated, as both types are meant for different roles in different environments." The king saw the point and expressed touché. But, in fact, he was beguiled and gaslighted.

Such sophistry and polemics the rulers use to placate the qualms of accountability, if they ever have, and to justify their own perks and privileges - medical treatments abroad, extravagant weddings, royal robes and accessories, luxurious vehicles and elite lifestyles. Their chronic apathy towards their masses becomes all too obtrusive when we are disillusioned that they believe the miseries of the never-haves are the natural part and parcel of their existence. The belief in taxonomy based on birthright status justifies and perpetuates the divide between the ruler and the ruled.