The BJP is going to get a tough time in the upcoming Lok Sabah elections this year. A new political alliance has been formulated in India under the leadership of the Indian National Congress. The name of this newly formulated alliance is ‘India National Developmental Inclusive Alliance’ commonly known as ‘INDIA’. The only purpose and target of this political alliance is to challenge the BJP’s hegemonic designs regarding conversion of the whole country into a purely Hindu state. The parties, included in this alliance, are of the opinion that the BJP under the leadership of Mr. Modi, is damaging India’s image as a secular democracy. They are determined to revive and preservethe identity of India as a secular state as expressed in the Constitution of India. By crushing down the Constitution, the BJP always remains engaged in targeting, punishing and suppressing specific minority groups; the Muslims and the Sikhs are at the top of the list.
Recently on 28th March 2024, a Hindu mob torched a mosque and injured about 12 people besides setting on fire property in Chittorgarh area of Rajasthan. According to Kashmir Media Service, a rally of Hindu goons while passing a Masjid set it on fire and indulged in violence against the Muslims in Chittorgarh.The KMS revealed that 12 people sustained injuries during the incident. Reportedly, several shops and bikes had also been burned. It was also reported that someone among the attackers made a video clip of this violent activity and posted it on social media with derogatory remarks. The most pathetic thing is the indifferent attitude of the BJP government in response to this incident; some experts are of the opinion that this indifference is intentional. The BJP government is doing all possible to make things painfully difficult for all minorities living in India and this all is being done under the command of Mr. Modi and support of the R&AW. In a recent write up appeared in the East Asia Forum, Robin Jeffry said, “From a young age, Modi has been a member of the Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh (RSS), a Hindu-supremacist organization whose inspiration stems from Italian fascism of the 1920s. The social and cultural goals of the RSS call for the creation of a state in which the strong central rule of a Hindu supremacist party and its leader bring about the rebirth of a golden Hindu civilization.” For changing the Indian society into a purely Hindu society, Mr. Modi is no doubt working very hard. If he succeeds, it would become a society where no community belonging to some other religious school of thought would be allowed to survive. If all goes well according to the RSS desires and the planning of the BJP under the guidance and command of Mr. Modi, we would find not even a single Sikh, Muslim or even a Christian in the country in the next twenty years. Demolition of ancient mosques, Churches and Gurdwaras and their conversion into Hindu temples seems first step to that destination.
Last month on 9th February, according to the Aljazeera, at least five people were killed and dozens others injured during a protest sparked by the demolition of a mosque and of a religious school in India’s northern state of Uttarakhand. Reports say that on 8th February, these buildings in Haldwani Town were bulldozed by the Municipal authorities without issuing any prior notices. On the other hand the government officials blamed that the two buildings were built without getting proper permission. But the local people are of the opinion that in Haldwani Town not even a single building is constructed after getting permission from the Municipal authorities as it is a very old area. They say that if it were a building of a Mandir, it would never have been demolished so ruthlessly. Whatever is being done against the worship-places of religious minorities in India, is the part of an ‘officially- supervised’ move against the minorities there; it is not the result of any ‘hatred’ among different communities as Hinduism never preaches hatred; it is simply the result of an effort of winning the political-battle by using religion as a weapon.
The Indian state of Manipur witnessed a horrible wave of violent attacks on churches in the first week of May 2023. That waveresulted in demolition, destruction and even burning of around 249 churches in just first 36 hours. Archbishop Lumon expressed his deep grief over ‘the silence of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the cluelessness of interior minister Amit Shah and indecisiveness of the local government’regarding that wave of violence. Same were the reservations of Major Archbishop of the Syro-Malabar Church with reference to the dumbness of the authorities. He said, “It is shameful that even though Christian churches have been destroyed and thousands have been left homeless, those at the helm of the administration are still not ready to condemn such activities or reject the rioters.” Reports say that it is the R&AW behind all such brutal activities and this organization is under the direct command of the Indian Prime Minister Mr. Modi. Even in India people say that R&AW no more means The Research & Analysis Wing, it is the Rogue Assassins Wing of the BJP. The R&AW is doing all its best to convert India into a purely Hindu state under the guidance and command of Mr. Modi. It seems a matter of just a few years that we would not find even a single Muslim, Sikh or Christian living an honourable life in that Hindu society. But at the same time we cannot ignore the strong presence of the ‘India National Developmental Inclusive Alliance’ type of organisations which are giving a real tough time to Mr. Modi and his dreams.
(The writer is Principal of a Government College and senior columnist, based in Multan.)
