Communalism
“only Hindus can protect Hindus and only Muslims can protect Muslims” is the overriding argument in the India of the 21st century.
Such ‘facts’ and such ‘arguments’ go hand in hand, traversing the length and breadth of the country.
https://thewire.in/communalism/what-we-lose-through-the-ghettoisation-of-urban-india
With prosperity promised and ambitions high, elements of spirituality and contentment which are understood to be the core of religion, bear little relevance in an urban population’s life. Yet their sense of religious identity remains all pervading. There is a conundrum here: religion in them appears skin-deep and yet, religious identity is writ large on their face.
A Hindu, whether or not s(he) is religious and a Muslim, whether or not s(he) is a practicing one, have access to big mosques and grand temples. They have community leaders and protectors of their ‘interests’. And of course, there are communal conflicts. Not necessarily in their neighbourhood, not necessarily where they could be affected, and maybe at a much farther place, which they may not have even heard of before.
But the impact of all this is nearly the same.
Any such strife is enough to bring a sense of insecurity in them and they think of shifting to a ‘secured’ place, thus creating more and more ghettos, which continue to expand even in times of peace.
The most unfortunate fact is that the educated and financially well-off middle-class Muslims and Hindus, who are safer than people living in unorganised, unplanned or undeveloped areas or localities, are not keen to beat ghettoisation.
14/08/2023
Just one question came to my mind while scrolling down social media posts on the violence in Haryana’s Nuh district triggered by the Vishwa Hindu Parishad-Bajrang Dal procession on Monday: For how many more decades will these people use the same tactics ad nauseam – playing music before mosques and in predominantly Muslim localities?
The question cropped up because of the long history of the issue. It is close to 150 years since music in front of mosques became a source of conflict between Hindus and Muslims.
Researchers have established that music emerged as a recurring source of communal violence during the colonial period, especially in the 1860s. Although their numbers were minuscule when compared to today’s figures, newspaper readers from the last decades of the 19h century were conversant about the phenomenon of ‘music-before-mosque riots’.
07/08/2023
Using the concept of social suffering, which is difficult to define, but can be articulated in several ways, this study ( report titled Social Suffering in a World Without Support, published by Bebaak Collective) seeks to understand what is happening to Muslims in India as the Hindutva agenda of converting India into a Hindu Rashtra, mirroring the Muslim state in Pakistan, has flowered since 2014. This has taken several forms: legal efforts through laws such as the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, the National Register of Citizens, etc. that disproportionately target Muslims, and for the first time, unconstitutionally inject religion into Indian citizenship.
There have been open calls for genocide of Muslims, while the police and the courts have remained silent. In Karnataka, which was under the the Bharatiya Janata Party until May 13, laws against wearing the hijab were passed. These laws severely affected Muslim women’s access to education. Separately, there have been calls to boycott all Muslim vendors of fruits and vegetables in India.
This report looks at what this daily hatred, fear and anxiety means to Muslims in India. This must have been a very difficult area to obtain interviews, since people are scared to talk. Indeed, many Hindus in India are scared to say anything even remotely critical of the current government. This report is based on interviews conducted in five states, namely Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra and Gujarat over a period of six months. It’s not clear how many interviews were conducted for the study.
by Mohan Rao
15/05/2023
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j8YYuqDiKZI
Comments by Dr. Ram Puniyani on the film 'Kerala Story"
'Deliberate Attempt To Communalise Kolhapur': Aurangzeb's Status Divides Maharashtra | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vQFLqFI-PgY The Wire Jun 10, 2023
Communal clashes in Kolhapur have disrupted the city's harmony. On the 300th anniversary of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj's coronation, a WhatsApp video glorifying Tipu Sultan incited outrage among some groups. Concurrently, posters featuring Aurangzeb were displayed during a festival in Ahmednagar. A protest march by the 'Sakal Hindu Samaj' in Sangamner on June 7th remained peaceful, but the next day, Hindu groups in Kolhapur turned violent, pelting stones at shops. Political discussions highlight polarization tactics ahead of elections. Social media's role in spreading distrust is concerning. Efforts are underway to restore peace and promote inclusivity in Kolhapur.
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