Religious intolerance

Statements that threaten the country’s secular fabric are being made by those holding high offices in government and the ruling party. Union minister Sadhvi Niranjan Jyoti made a shocking statement regarding ramzaadon (children of Ram) and haramzaadon (illegitimate children). Sakshi Maharaj referred to Mahatma Gandhi’s killer Nathuram Godse as a hero. External affairs minister Sushma Swaraj proposed to make the Gita a national scripture, causing a flutter in political circles. To this Gopalkrishna Gandhi, the Mahatma’s grandson responded, "A country which is in the process of making a holy book the national book is tinkering with the loom of India’s diverse republic.”
Churches have been attacked and a 72-year-old nun was gang raped on March 14, 2015 in Bengal’s Nadia district. The Christian community was further hurt when Mohan Bhagwat, chief of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) said, "It is good to work for a cause with selfless intentions. But Mother Teresa’s work had an ulterior motive, which was to convert the person who was being served to Christianity,” thereby denigrating a globally revered figure. A prominent Christian, Julio Ribeiro, formerly of the police force stated, "I sense a certain fear in people I meet from my community. The Christian community feels it is under siege.”
During his visit to India in January 2015, US President Barack Obama remarked, "Every person has the right to practice his faith without any persecution or fear. India will succeed so long as it is not splintered along religious lines.” He later reiterated in Washington that "I returned from India, a country full of diversity, but where, in past years, religious faiths have been targeted: intolerance that would have shocked Gandhi.”
Many Hindu intellectuals have been extremely vocal about this disturbing scenario. Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s reaction was, "My government’s only religion is India first. It treats the Constitution as its sole scripture… it worships only the cause of the welfare of all. We want all religions to prosper. We are for unity in diversity, not disunity. All religions should flourish.” Despite these strong words, malicious remarks continue to be made against Christians and Muslims.
At the seventh annual National Commission for Minorities (NCM) lecture, noted jurist Fali Nariman said, "We have been hearing… almost on a daily basis the tirade by one or more individuals or groups against one or another section of citizens who belong to a religious minority. The criticism is that the government at the center has done nothing to stop this… I agree. Those who indulge in hate speeches must be prevented by court processes initiated at the instance of the NCM because that is the body that represents minorities in India… they must be proceeded against and the proceedings must be widely publicized... only then the confidence of the minorities in the NCM will get restored.”
I have always maintained that Hindus are extremely tolerant. They have over the centuries welcomed Christians, Parsis and a few decades back the Tibetans. Perhaps India is the only country where Jews have not been persecuted. Ours has been a composite culture, inclusive and tolerant. Why then do we suddenly observe narrowing horizons, communal poisoning and polarization? Let there be unity in diversity and let us learn to celebrate our differences.
Dr HOMI DHALLA
wzcf@bom8.vsnl.net.in