Thinking Seriously

With the recent downturn for proverbial political issues to trigger Indian electorate; political parties now take refuge to communalism that has earlier spearheaded victories to many. India is now on the edge of a major socio-political crisis with controversial CD believed to be circulated by one of the nationalist party containing inflammatory campaign materials (in one of the election bound state) opened the Pandora box on whether India is a ‘victim to Hindu fundamentalist’s bullets’. Succumbing to ailing leadership, corrupt party members and hardliners, the saffron brigade of Indian parliament or resort back to its much acclaimed ‘communal color’ that voted it to power in 1999.

In a near contemporary order, the country with its diverse religions and ethnicities has experienced with fundamentalism yet bloody and traumatic followed with assassination of some of its prominent leaders such as, M. K. Gandhi, Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi as some of the stark reminders. From a perspective of non-fundamentalist, the ideology is often criticized and claimed to be scandalous resulting to factionalism, violent ethnic conflicts, civil wars and political degradation. But, it would be wide of the mark to claim Hindu fundamentalism in India as a progeny of post-colonial or independence era. Way back in 1666, the tribal king ‘Shivaji’ venerated in Maharashtra as the father of ‘Hindu nation’ lead his forces to fight against the then Mughal emperor Aurangzeb. A large numbers of historians from previous generations who have written on Shivaji and his consequent battles with Mughal ruler cannot undermine the strong prevalence of an unrelenting hatred towards Muslim and his desire to become the first and great Hindu monarch. (Ironically, Shivaji served as the unofficial mascot to the saffron brigade of Indian Parliament and its outfits)

Yet, a clear relationship between fundamentalisms in India was established for the first time in 1947-48•the year of India’s independence when Muslim League (a polito-religious order founded by Mawlana Mawdudi) eventually separated itself from the bigger cause and constitute a separate and distinct nation resulting ‘Partition’. Many were deported, mowed and transported from their land amidst mass violence resulting to greater hatred and reason for newly fangled Hindu fundamental ideology. Similar strife’s were witnessed between 1960 and 1980 but the year 1990 brings forth the shifts that have occurred in the nature of communal riots in India to a more prominent form.

Critics or Congress eulogists often considered the fall of Congress (I) and accession of BJP as the strong political force insinuating the communal patters in the nation, largely for politicization of Mandir-Masjid issue and subsequent demolition of Babri Masjid • an abandoned mosque situated on the precincts of what claimed to be the birthplace of Hindu god, Rama. The mobilization campaign for Kar sevaks to construct the proposed Ram Janmabhoomi Temple at Ayodhya on 30th October 1990 aggravated the communal atmosphere in the country. Communal riots occurred in the wake of L. K. Advani’s Rath Yatra wherever it went.. These riots were led by RSS-BJP men to consolidate the ‘Hindu’ vote bank. They were widespread over almost all the states from Assam to West Bengal, Bihar, Orissa, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Gujarat, Maharashtra and Delhi. Eruptions of communal violence are prevalent since then and Ram (the Hindu God) is long-ly established as the tool to instigate violence, bloodshed and hatred in communally sensitive areas. Indeed, BJP-RSS combo was largely benefited from the game plan. Their effort to brand Muslim community as the source of terrorism and anti-national activities abetted the efforts of the Hindu communalists.

Think otherwise, if BJP as a party is popularizing and supportive to Hindu fundamentalism other political parties too not faraway. They are happy to use communal divisions to try to garner political support, and to foster “minority appeasement” despite of the fact that the basic architecture of Indian constitution remains secular. In his recent political speech, Rahul Gandhi • the unofficial crown prince of Congress (I) and grandson of India’s only women prime minister Indira Gandhi pull the strings of Ayodha and Babri Masjid as a means to appease electorate. (Well, they say never bury the hatchet in politics) Not to forget, Congress were the prime force for anti-Sikh riots that broke out in Delhi and parts of North India after the assassination of the then prime Minister Mrs. Indira Gandhi by her Sikh bodyguards. The pattern of these riots showed that they were organized and planned against a particular community and the many senior Congress leaders were alleged to have participated in the anti-Sikh riots. The main accused in these riots were H. K. L. Bhagat, Sajjan Kumar and Jagdish Tytler. All these senior Congress leaders were exonerated till the CBI on July 11, 2003 filed an appeal against a lower court which acquitted Sajjan Kumar.

Signs of similar turbulence and catastrophes are likely to revisit and haunt India in recent years. What I believe the nation and the Parliamentary forces needs to combat the communalism in India is to use development assistance programs that work toward long-term prevention of communal violence by establishing educational exchange programs among communities and other countries that have dealt with communal violence.