Election 2014 after some days
is going to end. But still it could not decide, which party is going to form the
government and what would happen on 16 may. The Congress has accepted its
befitting. Such as Union Minister Salman Khurshid on Saturday said “The Congress
could consider extending support to the Third front or taking its help, if
necessary to form the government at the Centre after Lok Sabha polls”.
He claimed that Narendra Modi was going to emerge as a “big problem” for BJP and
referring to Ram temple movement, said that when “Bhagwan ki lehar” (God’s wave)
could not stop Congress, then how can “Modi wave” stop it.
There is arising a question. Are there any Secular Parties in India?
The Hindutva forces comprising of RSS, BJP and myriad other formations have
clear anti Muslim ideological pronouncements and active involvement in
innumerable communal riots including the reprehensible Gujrat carnage of 2002
supposedly with the use of state machinery and complicity of Narendra Modi, the
Chief Minister of the State. Such history and track record seems to make BJP a
fit candidate to be labeled a communal group. But what about parties like the
Congress, BSP, SP, RJD, JDU and others. Are they indeed secular? Isn’t The
Congress responsible for the demolition of Babri Masjid and Comedown of Muslims
for the last sixty years?
It is important to understand that the danger from
BJP lead by Modi is not just to the Muslims Community But more than to secular
character of our country and democracy. A simple analysis of the build up and
the conduct of the campaign for 2014 general elections reveals emergence of
Narendra Modi as the leader sidelining all others, including stalwarts like
Advani and subverting the party itself. If BJP indeed comes to power, then the
character of the new government will not be defined so much by the party but by
Narendra Modi. as well as the so called Gujarat Model.
The Samajwadi Party (SP), that came to power mostly due to the Muslim vote in
2012 but allowed over a hundred communal clashes within a year of its rule
culminating in the reprehensible riot in Muzaffarnagar that killed more than 200
and displaced over 60,000 Muslims, communal or secular?. Modi is indeed
answerable for the Gujrat carnage as the Chief Minister. But why should not the
Chief Minister of UP, Akhilesh Yadav, be held equally accountable for the riots
in Muzaffarnagar.
As a final point we seem to have succeeded in dividing India, a country of a
billion plus, into just two groups. Both groups claim to be secular. The only
difference is that while one group accuses the other of being communal, the
other brands the first group of being fake secular.
Secularism and fake secularism have become major planks in India for acquiring
political power.
Intellectuals from across the world and Great Islamic Scholars have also made
appeals not to vote for communal parties (meaning BJP) and save secularism. On
the other hand, BJP and its allies by questioning the deception and limitations
in the practice of secularism by Congress and others seem to be succeeding in
influencing the people on the street enough to make them equate secularism with
Muslim appeasement and hence the increasing polarization.
even though any talk of secularism immediately brings into focus and mostly
revolves around the Muslim and to some extent the Christian community -
excluding multitude of other religions, sects and social groupings that make up
India and seems to imply that secularism is essentially a requirement of Muslims
and not so much for other communities, especially the majority community, or for
the country.
Secularism in India (with its
religious, caste, linguistic, ethnic and regional diversities) necessary only
for Muslims and are secular credentials to be gauged by determining if you
protect or harm Muslims?
When such dictatorial mindset and practice is back by an ideology Hindutva in
this case, it becomes an ideal recipe for a fascist state. So what is at stake
is not just secularism but the very continuation of democracy in our country. If
there is no democracy, there can be no secularism, freedom of expression,
entitlements and so many other values that are essential for any society to
sustain and prosper.
It is time people of India apprehend that in their mad move quickly to vote for
or against secularism, they should not end up sacrificing the very core essence
of our nation: Democracy.
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