Sudheendra Kulkarni: With his Fabindia boycott call, Tejasvi Surya is hurting the soul of Hinduism https://scroll.in/article/1008194/sudheendra-kulkarni-with-his-fabindia-boycott-call-tejasvi-surya-is-hurting-the-soul-of-hinduism Hinduism is noted for its incredible diversity and its widely admired spirit of tolerance and respect for other faiths and cultures.
You say that “Fabindia must face economic costs” for its “misadventure” of putting out an advertisement calling for the celebration of Diwali in a way that does not conform to your standard Hindutva template. This is economic terrorism, pure and simple.
If Fabindia has pulled its ad – and other brands like Tata’s Tanishq have also done the same for the same reason in recent years – it is because they know that the coercion comes from those belonging to the ruling party, that its followers know how to enforce the boycott call given by their leaders, and also that the law enforcement machinery will not come to the aid of the victims if their shops are vandalised.
Tejasvi Surya’s Diwali tweet should not be dismissed as the harmless fulmination of a 30-year-old budding political leader. It connotes majoritarian intolerance, exclusivism and divisiveness that are now rapidly spreading in India. Yugoslavia’s fragmentation started in a similar sinister manner.
Tejasvi Surya @Tejasvi_Surya Oct 18,2021
Deepavali is not Jash-e-Riwaaz. This deliberate attempt of abrahamisation of Hindu festivals, depicting models without traditional Hindu attires, must be called out. And brands like @FabindiaNews must face economic costs for such deliberate misadventures. https://twitter.com/FabindiaNews/status/1446881162748579849