Beware of agenda-setting fundamentalists

Amidst a raging debate on nationalism and secularism, Prime Minister made clear diversity should never be a cause of discord. “All our people Hindus, Muslims, Sikhs, Christians, Jains, Buddhists, the micro-minority of Parsis, believers and non-believers are an integral part of India, asserted he at the recent World Sufi Forum meeting.

Undoubtedly, this message is significance against the backdrop when social conflicts have been at the forefront. Consequently, as Modi emphasized there was a need to reject the link between religion and terrorism. A thought which has also been echoed by scholars from different fields and religious beliefs, yet Islamic fundamentalists continue violence, failing to realise that God is one and is worshipped in different names.

Argued Vice President Hamid Ansari at Jammu University’s 16th convocation, “whether (realistically) a complete separation of religion and politics might not better serve Indian democracy…Since a wall of separation is not possible under Indian conditions, the challenge is to develop a formula for equidistance and minimum involvement.”

However, he wanted principles of faith to be segregated from conditions of culture, as different faiths “claim a cultural sphere and a historical justification for it,” which, according to him was probably right. Though Modi has been sending the right message, his party and RSS have done just the opposite. The recent controversy over ‘Bharat Mata ki Jai’ slogan bears this out. .

Clearly, the understanding of the country as ‘mother’ is not acceptable to certain minorities under interpretation of our Fundamental Rights of freedom of speech. On the other hand, Muslims should discard obscurantist ideas such as blasphemy and practices of polygamy and triple talaq keeping in mind the international scenario. But the offensive RSS attitude towards the food habits of Muslims cannot be justified.

These developments in recent times, including the unfortunate beef lynching at Dadri, JNU’s sedition row and RSS allegations of educational institutions becoming “hotbeds of anti-national activities” have raised doubts about the government’s sincerity in bringing about true secularism. Certainly, the intolerance debate has been stretched too far by both the Opposition and rightist including the BJP.

Remember, the country belongs to all wherein each one should be allowed to traverse his own path and no group should try to impose their beliefs on others through coercion. Instead, try to adapt measures wherein a community can be integrated on accepted principles given our diverse country where every citizen enjoys equal rights as enshrined in the Constitution.

The RSS objective of building a glorious India and saving and/or highlighting Hindu culture may be exemplary but this should not be forced on people. They need to bear in mind that though traditional Hindu culture and tradition need to be popularised there are other cultures too which also need to be applauded and we can also learn from them.

The Justice Sachar Committee report is a sad commentary on the socio-economic conditions of Muslims in the country and the community’s role in educating the poorer sections of the people. The government must treat this as a priority and simultaneously encourage labour-intensive industries as destructive forces will continue to divert attention through religious and other issues.