“An inconvenient truth”

Mehlli Bhagalia’s vitriolic attack on Jamsheed Kanga for having written "An inconvenient truth” is a typical example of religious intolerance (Readers’ Forum, Parsiana, March 21, 2009). Bhaga­lia has every right to disagree with Kanga’s religious views, but to indulge in character assassination just because of this is unfair labeling.

This is a distorted thinking process that causes one to feel inappropriately indignant and morally superior. Generally such distortions are heavily loaded with emotional reasoning. One gathers from Bhagalia’s comments that just because Kanga does not agree with his own religious views he feels that Kanga is committing some kind of sin. Evidently this is not Bhagalia’s fault. He is so deeply conditioned by a particular ideology encouraged by one particular school of religious thought that he would go to any extent to protect that particular concept.

Bhagalia appears to be a deeply religious person. However, without wanting to hurt his religious sentiments one fervently hopes and prays that he would reflect on the virtue of religious tolerance as taught by our prophet Zara­thushtra. After all, it is a virtue that is slowly beginning to turn into a rare commodity in our community.

YAZDI KOHIAR

yazdikohiar@yahoo.co.uk