By: Tawfeeq Irshad Mir
It often surprises the world as to how India- with variable religions, communities, cultures- still exist as a single unit, thriving towards globalisation both democratically and economically. To continue with this principle, such ethos is the inert characteristic of India with massive population, as India can’t afford a division. The history is testimony to the fact that the inclusive approach of India has been profound and has magnanimous attributes.
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The constitution of India was designed pertaining to the diversity of its people. But the threat was ionizing in the environment, an aggregation of certain section within the nation launched a scathing attack to the initiatives propelled by Nehru led government.
The ‘Holy’ book for the RSS cadres has a long chapter titled ‘Internal Threats’ in which Muslims and Christians are described as two biggest threats respectively. Communists are played at number 3. This chapter opens with the following statement:
“It has been the tragic lesson of the history of many a country in the world that the hostile elements within the country pose a far greater menace to national security then aggressors from outside.”\
While treating Muslims as hostile element and placing them at the top of the list, the chapter further reads that “…even to this day there are so many who say, ‘now there is no Muslim problem at all. All those riotous elements who supported Pakistan have gone away once for all. The remaining Muslims are devoted to our country. After all, they have no other place to go and they are bound to remain loyal’….It would be suicidal to delude ourselves into believing that they have turned patriots overnight after the creation of Pakistan. On the contrary, the Muslim menace has increased a hundredfold by the creation of Pakistan which has become a springboard for all their future aggressive designs on our country.”
The chapter further reads:
“…within the country there are so many Muslim pockets, i.e., so many ‘miniature Pakistans’… The conclusion is that, in practically every place, there are Muslims who are in constant touch with Pakistan over the transmitter…”
The RSS, with an ideology as such will eventually destroy the ethos and integrity of a great Nation i.e India. The irony is that the organization that is sermonizing the nation over patriotism, describing people as terrorists, branding even the most prominent Indian citizens as traitors and sympathizers of other countries have forgotten that the first terrorist act in independent India was carried out by Nathoram Ghodse, an RSS ideologue.
Such elements that oppose almost every single move by the govt. and go on naming and branding people on the basis of their self drawn definitions of nationalism and patriotism pose the greatest threat to the country’s integrity and identity.
We have seen, in the recent past that people in India are increasingly frightened by sort of politics that is thriving on hate crimes and ‘othering’ of minority communities in India. All such elements that propagate hate politics and give legitimacy to violence, lynching’s, polarization etc are the real enemies of a democratic country with a great reputation of being a pluralistic and an all-accommodative society. Altering nomenclature, restrictions on press, cow vigilantism, increasing rapes, mob lynching’s, riots have been on rise during the recent past are indicative of the kind of intolerance that is creeping in in the mainstream politics of India.
The concept of India is more than a community, more than a religion, it’s about a strong foundation that ensures people to keep to their faiths and religions and yet be part of the bigger whole- the nation. Such forces that propound the idea of extremist will deter the idea of inclusiveness and oneness.
tawfeeqirshad@gmail.com
