Secularism; or selectivism cum opportunism? An analysis by Subrata Das

May 26: Of late, Gyanvapi Mosque in Varanasi has sparked off huge controversy after five Hindu women filed a petition in the Varanasi court in the previous year seeking permission to worship the deities of Shringar Gauri, Lord Ganesh, Lord Hanuman, and Nandi regularly. And,the Civil Judge (Senior Division) of Varanasi ordered for videography of the Shringar Gauri temple in the Kashi Vishwanath- Gyanvapi complex and adjoining places in the last month.

Many people strongly believe that this mosque was originally a place of worship for Hindus which was demolished and rebuilt as mosque by Aurangzeb once upon a time. Since the ordering of videography, from both Hindu and Muslim side, points and counter points are being made in TV debates to establish their claim over the site. Many people are expecting that court would not proceed further considering the Places of Worship Act 1991.

However, the latest opinion expressed by the Hon’ble Supreme Court that Places of Worship Act 1991 doesn’t bar finding religious character of the place of worship. As the matter is still sub-judice, all the ideal citizens are looking forward to the final court verdict. As, the subject comes under the purview of civil court, some new petitions may be filled by different parties in the days coming ahead. And, whatever is concluded ultimately by the Hon’ble Court, people of this country are expected to accept it with positive spirit.

In the meantime, some groups and parties are spreading a narrative of dividing India on this issue. India is already divided on religious line through bloodshed in 1947. We Indians have accepted the partition as a harsh truth. However, our country has been witnessing a strange phenomenon for last 3/4 decades. Whenever such type of appeal remains subject to court verdict, a section of people is awakened and try to show outrage with hate and suspicion. And, as a result, with all hue and cry, bandh, road blockade, stone pelting, demolishing of national property etc takes place in the name of freedom of speech or expression. But, when some people peacefully seeks justice from the court of law, their constitutional rights are bashed. Whereas, ours is the only country which has never tried to apply the majoritarian beliefs on its fundamental structure. Even, the present government seems to believe in country’s diversified culture. Once, in the name of amendment, the preamble of our constitution was changed by adding the word ‘Secular’ and that too, during the most undemocratic and unconstitutional tenure of emergency in the past. And, we the people of India didn’t react to it, because by spirit we Indians are secular. Normally, preamble is amended nowhere in the world, which means, in the name of surgery, an extra hand is added with a leg in a human body.

Those who always speak for constitution, when a verdict given by the Hon’ble court not as per their whims or dream, they don’t welcome it. They even don’t hesitate to blame that our judiciary is biased. They try to argue why our country won’t be divided. It’s not understandable why they always speak of parting India when we have a constitution par excellence.

However, may be, some people are frustrated witnessing the way things are moving on. They proclaim India has earned bad reputation and they always hold government and the people believing in the government responsible behind the blot on India. But, fact of the matter is, if India had lost its glory a bit in the past, it was because of the corruption, sycophancy, nepotism & favoritism and feudalism. However, now the position of India is quite strong and bright. Only God knows whether these negative minded people probably prefer living in Syria, Bangladesh, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Venezuela to India. However, country can’t be parted for one’s personal whim and caprice. No way. Actually, these people believe in selectivism and politics of convenience. They believe in preaching and propagating hate in the name of harmony, they want to spread intolerance in the name of tolerance and they don’t have faith in our constitution and judiciary. Reality always bites them like itching leaves. Had Rabindranath Tagore been alive, they would have tried to bash him heavily for his writing, who commented on Masjid at Kashi built by Aurangzeb in in his ‘Japan Jatri‘ : (….Kashite jekhane hindur pujake apomanito korbar janyo Aurangzeb masjid sthapon koreche, sekhane na dekhi srike, na dekhi kalyanke) “….In Kashi, where Aurangzeb had built mosque with a view to demean Hindu’s worship of God , I find there’s no beauty or welfare in that”.

A large selection of urban intelligentsia is yet to understand what awakened majority of Indians. It’s the activities of these hate mongers who have been relentlessly trying to demean Hindus for decades. Their mockery with Sanatan doctrine and efforts to establish the false narrative of Hindu phobia have awakened average and below average Indians very strongly. They never think that Sanatan is not a so-called organised or patronized religion. It never believes in expansionism. It not only gives enough personal space to everyone else in this world, but also is extremely tolerant towards their fellow citizens by default. It’s based on polytheism and inclusiveness.

Even, the atheists, pantheists and agnostics are most welcome here. There’s no place for ‘my way or highway’ theory in our age old Sanatan philosophy. Intellectuals belonging to toolkit or tukre tukre gang say Hindus are being organised with hate and arms. About 3 million people were butchered, raped, looted, plundered, persecuted during ‘Operation Searchlight’ in 1971 by Pakistani army, which is called the ‘Forgotten Genocide’ in history. None of these persecuted people or their descendants have taken arms in hand like the ill fated Kashmiri pundits. And these political clouts are making fun by accusing them of being organised with hate and arms! Ridiculously rubbish! They are not only pathologically negative, but also incorrigibly biased. They believe in speaking political rhetoric with brazen lies for their vested interest. Their claim for peace and prosperity is a complete travesty of truth. On one hand, they blame British and Americans for their misdeeds, on the other hand they defend Mughals for their heinous crimes.

Many people argue that past is past, we shouldn’t remember bygones, we should simply forget and let it go. It means, no correction of history should be made. We should allow our future generations to learn wrong history and forget our sparkling heritage and identity. If we really believe, past is past and we shouldn’t dig into bygones, then why do we cry and fight after our money or wealth is cheated, looted or snatched? What makes us stop to recall ‘forget and forgive’ policy then? Shall we pardon those perpetrators by simply looking at things this way that money and wealth is perishable, so let it go? We shouldn’t preach what we don’t practice. A false narrative is written as history and spread with some vested political interests should be corrected as soon as possible,  otherwise, if the history is scripted from the angle of secularism, communal harmonization and anti colonization rather than focusing on truth, it will be another Harry Potter Series or a soap opera, but not history.