The Holy Bible says, “All scripture is inspired by God and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and instructing in righteousness”, and “Those who consider themselves religious and do not keep a tight rein on their tongue are deceiving themselves , and their religion is worth nothing.
Our Constitution states that “all persons are equally entitled to freedom of conscience and the right freely to profess, practice and propagate a religion subject to public order, morals and health”.
When the Constitution and even our Holy Scriptures require the preaching of any religion, why does the government continue to invoke religion in all matters? When did religion change its definition of “bringing peace and prosperity” to “conflict and war”. Why has religion become a concern in politics?
Not so long ago, a flame was ignited when Nupur Sharma made a controversial comment about the Prophet Muhammad during a televised debate. This has rekindled the fire among the citizens of the country that we consider our brothers brothers. People have been threatened, harassed and even lost their lives for supporting someone’s statement.
Since when did India become such an intolerant country when it comes to religion?
Massacres based on religion have been so common that India has ranked as one of the two countries with the highest risk of massacres based on freedom. Religious minorities in India feel threatened.
Hatred of religion first manifested itself in the Citizenship Amendment Act, which opened the doors to genocide.
There have been attacks on churches and destruction of homes, and the country has seen the hijab banned. The whole country visualized such a situation which was dehumanizing for people to such an extent that one of the ministers called Muslims termites.
Another example that was seen recently was the inauguration of Lucknow LuLu Mall, where office staff were offering Namaz inside the mall. The video went viral which triggered serious repercussions after some Akhil Bharatiya Hindu Mahasabha members staged a protest outside the mall after the video went viral.
The leaders had an indifferent view of the situation. As a result, the authorities had to make the difficult decision not to maintain any religious activity on the premises of the mall.
Moreover, the situation got out of hand when the Hindu sabha approached the police and filed a complaint stating that 70% of the workers were Muslims. By doing this, they are practicing ‘Love Jihad’.
The accusations made by the Hindu Sabha were false in many respects. Recently, the world celebrated Eid. Just like any festival of any religion, this should also be enjoyed. Aren’t malls decorated for Diwali or Christmas? And how promoting enmity between two different religions has become right and acceptable, but providing employment to those in need or praying namaz is unfair.
When did India go from a secular country to an intolerant country?
Dr. JK Bajaj of the Center for Policy Studies has conducted research on the country’s religious demographics. The Prime Minister of Uttar Pradesh expressed concern about the imbalance of religious demography in India. The breakdown of census data showed that the Muslim population has grown from 13.43% in 2001 to 14.23%, now showing a significant increase of 0.8% over the years. He said India’s growing Muslim population could lead to fractures in terms of religious lines.
In a recent event addressed by Narendra Modi, our Honorable Prime Minister, during the appointment of the 15th President of Ramakrishna Math, he was criticized by a knowledgeable TMC MP, Mahua Moitra, for invoking Goddess Kali in his speech. When Narendra Modi expressed his devotion to Goddess Kali and how devoted he is that he tries to visit the Belur Math to seek Goddess’ blessings, she took him to the stand and accused him of try to win the votes of the people of West Bengal. .
It seems that religion is no longer a source of spirituality but merely a means of gaining votes and gaining power in India. This thinking is more damaging and misleading than any pandemic will ever be.
In ten years, when we talk about our country, I hope we will feel pride rather than anguish in our hearts.
Edited by Prakriti Arora
