Ashok Singhal puts India on jeopardy, be aware!

The RSS family is tactfully pursuing on the path of making India a racist hegemony like Israel. But the question arises, will it succeed?

The BJP-led government's Prime Minister Narendra Modi is craving for sab ka sath sab ka vikas (cooperation of all, development of all). The RSS chief is endorsing Muslims as natural inhabitants of India. Indresh Kumar, the guide of Muslim Rashtriya Morcha, has asked Muslims in an Iftar Party to shun communalism (as if they are sustaining communalism in the country) and join the mainstream. Parveen Togadia mobilizes Hindus for ghettoization of Muslims and another BJP leader, Giriraj Singh, asks them to either support BJP or go to Pakistan. And, now the VHP leader Ashok Singhal has once again threatened the Indian Muslim community torespect' Hindus or be prepared to lose their existence on the Indian land.

These different voices of a polymouth are nothing but a systematic persuasion of a racist policy to subjugate minorities and other sections of the country. It is an attempt to push the reverse gear of the development by taking India from 21st century to the ancient cave dwellings, wherein the cannibals thrived. It is an invitation to chaos and snatching from India its imminent opportunity of becoming a developed and civilized country.

Mr Singhal is right that Muslims should respect Hindus and in fact they do it in a fervent way. They respect Raja Rammohan Roy, Ramakrishna Paramhans, Ravindranath Tagore, Mahatma Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru, Subhash Chandra Bose, Baba Sahib Bhimrao Ambedkar, Bhagat Singh, Rajendra Prasad, Sarva Palli Radhakrishan, Jyotiba Phule, Premchand, MN Roy, Madhu Limye, Jayaprakash Narayan, Karpuri Thakur, Periyar EV Ramaswami, Karunanidhi and thousands of other distinguished Hindus and also millions of common Hindus with whom they live like kith and kin.

Indeed, Muslims have no aversion in respecting Hindus. However, how can they respect those who hate Muslims? How can anyone respect a person who is hell bent on harming the one in whatever way possible for him? It is wisely said that respect can be commanded but it cannot be demanded.

It is really strange that Shri Ashok Singhal is not learning from history. If he had, he would have noted that Muslims can be won by love but not by threats. They did not accept the imposed subjugation of the last two superpowers of the world and, while harming their own selves to a great extent, they brought USSR to get disintegrated and USA to enter into a whirlwind of invincible political and economic crisis. From once a developed country, Israel has now become a languishing country on all parameters of development by perpetuating war against the neighboring countries and its own rightful citizens. He should analyze how much economic loss the communal riots and the spate of both theMuslim' andsaffron' terrorism have incurred to India, apart from taking tolls of human lives.

Perhaps, Mr Singhal will not like to turn India to another Iraq or Afghanistan. And, if he unfortunately does, then the sane Indian community should surely stop him from bringing India to jeopardy and fail those who want a civil war in India just for their racist gratification.

Shri Ashok Singhal and his many followers wish that all the mosques in India should be surrendered to the self-styledHindu' leaders, starting with a small wish list of three places. In fact, the RSS has already prepared an inventory of 7000 mosques for theHindu' claim. What they will do with these mosques? They will put an idol inside each of them and that's all; may be a few more stony deities in them if they are extra generous. Will this act advance the Indian nation a bit? Already the Hindu community has more than 700,000 temples in hand; then what will be added into that treasure by all the 7000 demanded mosques? Just one per cent! For putting idols in one per cent mosques, the RSS family may throw India to an unmanageable chaos.

The young Indians, particularly the caste Hindus, have two choices. Either they should support such demagogues as Shri Ashok Singhal and bring the dream of super India to shatters or they should come out of the outdated racist ideologies and make India lead the world with an egalitarian outlook.

So long as Muslims are concerned they love India like any other citizen of the country and will not get swayed by the threats of any racist leader and will not collaborate with anyone in bringing India to a racist catastrophe. However, they will unwaveringly struggle for justice and due rights in a desired manner.

(Abdul Rashid Agwan is an author of several books including the recent one, “Islam in 21st Century: The Dynamics of Change and Future-making”. He may be contacted on [email protected])