Union Home Minister Amit Shah visits Punjab, the Punjab Police is busy detaining members of the Sainik Bhalai Board instead of allowing citizens to raise their voices. Is this democracy, or a carefully stage-managed show by Aam Aadmi Party and Bharatiya Janata Party? Mr. Shah, the farmers of Punjab have not forgotten the humiliation they faced — broken assurances, barricaded highways to Delhi, water cannons, lathi charges, and attempts to silence their protest. Punjab also deserves clear answers on the growing concerns around border security and the alarming flow of drugs and weapons entering the state. At the same time, people see gangsters continuing to run criminal networks even from prisons in states like Gujarat, while governments claim law and order is under control. Democracy is not about controlling voices before a visit. Punjab will ask its questions — and those questions cannot be stopped with barricades, detentions, or political theatre.