Is India ready to debate the issue of religious freedom?
A US think tank called Pew Research Centre has rated India as the second worst country in the world in terms of antagonistic acts against religious groups! However, in the same breath, they admit and appreciate that these are sporadic issues of some small miscreants and not engineered by broader government policy. A few months preceding this report, another report was published from the US Commission on International Religious Freedom, which for the first time placed India in its watch list, after witnessing Gujarat riot in 2002 and attacks on Christians in Orissa in 2008. India has always tried to set a high standard in her secular credentials, received a body blow as more reports pour in questioning her noble claim! Another study titled ‘Global Restrictions & Religion’ in its ‘Social Hostilities Index’ has placed Gujarat and Orissa at 197, below countries like Afghanistan, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia. The report reveals that among 25 most populous countries, India (along with Egypt, Indonesia and Pakistan) is most restrictive in religious practices of the minorities.
These reports contradict India’s image of a tolerant society. While none of these reports is correct in presenting India rightly, all of them tried to reveal some truths in the context of religious intolerance and how it is actually fading the image of this nation. India's image as a tolerant society emerged from the time of Independence, when the entire nation obeyed the Neheruvian tryst with secularism. There were a few Hindutva brigades, desperate to make a mark in the Indian polity, who tried to convince large section of the majority population that the time has come for a Hindu revival, perhaps out of insecurity, with increasingly assertive Muslims and Sikhs, and the secular parties’ pandering with minority groups. It gave enough impetus to the saffron parties to manipulate and rise to the helm of the Indian politics. Even Islamic fundamentalism in neighbouring Pakistan and Bangladesh convinced the Hindu electorate of nefarious foreign religious and political conspiracy to undermine the Hindu community bonds. India’s ambition to be global player lies with the fact that she needs to be a modern state, which could not be attained with infighting in the name of religion or other diversion towards destructive purposes. Campaigns that hounded away MF Hussain and Taslima Nasreen by couple of Hindu and Islamic fundamentalists, respectively, can surely depress India’s image as a progressive state. India has also failed to provide a healthy environment for open religious discussions; perhaps because religion was never perceived as a priority in the school and college education thus not included in the curriculums. Had it been so, we might have seen less religious violence. In spite of a few occurrences of disturbance, overall unity of a country as large and diverse as India is something one can be proud of— as it has always been a melting pot of various people being absorbed in this great nation. The Dalai Lama echoed the same, when he said, “India's long tradition of religions tolerance can be a role model for rest of the world.”
For Complete IIPM Article, Click on IIPM Article
Source : IIPM Editorial, 2009
A US think tank called Pew Research Centre has rated India as the second worst country in the world in terms of antagonistic acts against religious groups! However, in the same breath, they admit and appreciate that these are sporadic issues of some small miscreants and not engineered by broader government policy. A few months preceding this report, another report was published from the US Commission on International Religious Freedom, which for the first time placed India in its watch list, after witnessing Gujarat riot in 2002 and attacks on Christians in Orissa in 2008. India has always tried to set a high standard in her secular credentials, received a body blow as more reports pour in questioning her noble claim! Another study titled ‘Global Restrictions & Religion’ in its ‘Social Hostilities Index’ has placed Gujarat and Orissa at 197, below countries like Afghanistan, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia. The report reveals that among 25 most populous countries, India (along with Egypt, Indonesia and Pakistan) is most restrictive in religious practices of the minorities.
These reports contradict India’s image of a tolerant society. While none of these reports is correct in presenting India rightly, all of them tried to reveal some truths in the context of religious intolerance and how it is actually fading the image of this nation. India's image as a tolerant society emerged from the time of Independence, when the entire nation obeyed the Neheruvian tryst with secularism. There were a few Hindutva brigades, desperate to make a mark in the Indian polity, who tried to convince large section of the majority population that the time has come for a Hindu revival, perhaps out of insecurity, with increasingly assertive Muslims and Sikhs, and the secular parties’ pandering with minority groups. It gave enough impetus to the saffron parties to manipulate and rise to the helm of the Indian politics. Even Islamic fundamentalism in neighbouring Pakistan and Bangladesh convinced the Hindu electorate of nefarious foreign religious and political conspiracy to undermine the Hindu community bonds. India’s ambition to be global player lies with the fact that she needs to be a modern state, which could not be attained with infighting in the name of religion or other diversion towards destructive purposes. Campaigns that hounded away MF Hussain and Taslima Nasreen by couple of Hindu and Islamic fundamentalists, respectively, can surely depress India’s image as a progressive state. India has also failed to provide a healthy environment for open religious discussions; perhaps because religion was never perceived as a priority in the school and college education thus not included in the curriculums. Had it been so, we might have seen less religious violence. In spite of a few occurrences of disturbance, overall unity of a country as large and diverse as India is something one can be proud of— as it has always been a melting pot of various people being absorbed in this great nation. The Dalai Lama echoed the same, when he said, “India's long tradition of religions tolerance can be a role model for rest of the world.”
For Complete IIPM Article, Click on IIPM Article
Source : IIPM Editorial, 2009
Read these article :-
Outlook Magazine money editor quits
Don't trust the Indian Media!
