Author: A Surya Prakash
Publication: The Pioneer
Date: May 9, 2006
A week ago two Indian States - Muslim majority
Jammu and Kashmir and Hindu majority Gujarat - were in the news for all the
wrong reasons. In Jammu and Kashmir, Islamic militants shot dead 32 members
of the minority Hindu community in cold blood. Having "cleansed"
the Kashmir Valley of Hindus, the terrorists are now hoping to achieve similar
success in other regions of the State.
In Gujarat, Vadodara witnessed a communal
conflagration following Muslim protests over demolition of encroachments.
The Government in Jammu and Kashmir, where the Hindus were slaughtered, is
headed by Mr Ghulam Nabi Azad, a Congressman and a Muslim. The Gujarat Government
is headed by Mr Narendra Modi, a BJP man and a Hindu.
We need to examine the conduct of the United
Progressive Alliance Government at the Centre in the light of these developments
in order to understand its intentions. In Vadodara, the civic authorities
who were clearing encroachments from public places had demolished a large
number of religious shrines existing on public land. This included at least
20 Hindu shrines and a dargah in Yakutpura.
Mr Deepak Swaroop, the Vadodara City Police
Commissioner, told the media that the demolition drive had been on for a fortnight
and as per orders, some Hindu temples too had been demolished. He said he
used to offer prayers at a Sai Baba Mandir close to his residence. However,
even that had to be demolished "and I could do nothing about it".
The Vadodara Municipal Commissioner said that before the demolition of the
dargah, 20 temples had been demolished "with the cooperation of the Hindus".
However, while the demolition of Hindu shrines
passed off peacefully, trouble broke out when the bulldozers approached the
dargah. Muslims went on a rampage and clashed with the police. Soon after
trouble broke out, the Gujarat High Court put its weight behind the demolition
drive.
It directed the civic authorities to remove
all encroachments including religious shrines. With Muslims crying themselves
hoarse over the demolition of the dargah, the UPA Government sniffed an opportunity
to conduct a fresh raid on the Muslim vote-bank. It despatched Sri Prakash
Jaiswal, the Minister of State for Home Affairs, to Vadodara, and moved the
Supreme Court for a stay on the Gujarat High Court's order.
In its pleadings before the apex court, the
Centre said it was deeply concerned about the safety and security of the citizens
of Gujarat and the prevailing law and order situation there. The High Court
order, it said, would have an impact on the "secular fabric of the nation".
Mr Jaiswal remained loyal to the Congress script. He criticised the Gujarat
Government for being insensitive to the feelings of Muslims.
Displaying his bleeding heart for Muslims,
this standard bearer of pseudo-secular politics indulged in suppressio veri,
suggestio falsi in his utterances to the media. He hid two important facts
from the people of India: One, that the removal of encroachments from public
places in Vadodara, Ahmedabad, Rajkot and Surat had the sanction of the Gujarat
High Court, which wanted this drive to be carried out impartially and efficiently.
Two, that many Hindu places of worship had come under the bulldozers before
the municipal authorities turned their attention to the dargah.
When told that the Vadodara Municipal Corporation
had demolished 20 temples, Mr Jaiswal told a television channel: "I don't
have any information about demolition of temples." And of course he did
not take cognisance of the statements of the Vadodara Police Commissioner
about the demolition of the Sai Baba Mandir.
After all this, we are supposed to believe
that this minister actually went to Vadodara to make an honest attempt to
ascertain the truth! Mr Jaiswal is only reminding us that not every one who
takes oath under the Constitution is working to strengthen and preserve it.
Politicians like him have the capacity to wreck it from within.
We now come to the gory events in the Congress-ruled
State of Jammu and Kashmir, which is the only Muslim majority State in the
country. And how are religious minorities treated here? Islamic militants
periodically form themselves into firing squads and shoot down Hindus in cold
blood in Doda, Jammu and Udhampur districts in this State. In the latest carnage,
32 Hindus were pulled out of their homes and gunned down. The Congress party,
however, does not seem to be unduly troubled by this dance of death.
Probably it feels that Muslim chief ministers
have no secular obligations to fulfill. Union Home Minister Shivraj Patil
visited the affected village in Udhampur but did not go to Kulhand in Doda.
Having cried itself hoarse over the plight of Muslim rioters of Vadodara,
the UPA Government had no tears to shed for Vimla Devi, the widow of village
chief Gopichand, who lost 12 members of her family including her husband in
this incident.
If there ever was a personal tragedy, this
was it, but tears for a Hindu destitute bring no electoral dividend. For the
very same reason the Centre is not troubled by "the prevailing law and
order situation" in this State. Nor does it think that the slaughter
of minority Hindus in Jammu and Kashmir will have any impact on "the
secular fabric of the nation". On the other hand, so impressed is the
UPA Government with the conduct of Mr Ghulam Nabi Azad after the latest massacre
of Hindus that the Union Home Minister even praised him for having "thought
of a plan" to protect Hindus.
Dr Rafiq Zakaria, who wrote Communal Rage
in Secular India after the Gujarat riots in 2002, had warned Muslims to beware
of politicians who will pretend to be their friends. "Many of those who
show them (Muslims) sympathy or consideration are not sincere. They do so
only to obtain some electoral gain. This has been proved time and time again
but only the wise take the hint and correct themselves."
Mr Jaiswal has been so transparently dishonest
on his recent visit to Vadodara that his conduct should put the Muslims of
Gujarat on high alert. They must pay heed to Dr Zakaria's warning and see
the Union Minister for what he is - an unscrupulous vote-gatherer whose parsimony
with truth can only bring more trouble to them.
