The BJP’s Smriti Irani

In Parsiana we read with interest how Parsis also had carried out a crusade for forcibly converting people to Zoroastrianism in the distant past ("Armenia: Conversion by the sword,” Parsiana, January 2004). We also keep ourselves abreast of the ongoing confrontation between the liberal and hardcore sections within the Zoroastrian community. India in particular, and the world in general, has been for some years now afflicted with violence and discord born from the re-emergence of fundamentalism in all the religions all over.

We sincerely hope that the Parsis who have been a shining example of true secularism in India and abroad would be able to successfully overcome this crisis in their community. We would also like to express our feeling of dismay at TV star Smriti Irani and her husband Zubin joining the fundamentalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Of course, being married to a Parsi does not in any way deprive her of her individual freedom. But, what made us really sad was that even people who marry across religious lines and thus have some claim to being liberal should also subscribe to such narrow sectarian ideologies.

ALICE RUSTOMJEE GARG and KRISHNA GARG

Jaipur, Rajasthan