An important interfaith dialogue was organized on the platform of Inter Faith Harmony Foundation of India in Delhi on the issue of increasing socio-communal unrest in some sections of the country, hatred spreading through social media, provocative activities of fringe elements and deepening sense of insecurity among minorities.
Example of Nehru’s speech
During this dialogue, while emphasizing the need for unity, inclusion and peace, sensitive issues like politics of hatred, role of fringe elements and silence of the top leadership especially the Prime Minister on such occasions were also discussed. Speakers emphasized that India’s real strength is its tradition of dialogue and inclusion, the historical example of which was given by the country’s first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru in his speech at Aligarh Muslim University on 24 January 1948, exactly one year after independence, where he placed nationalism above religion while calling upon the youth to introspect on their heritage, tradition and sense of pride for the nation. Citing this thinking, the speakers said that even today the way to unite India lies through dialogue, mutual respect and shared national consciousness and not through fear, hatred and distrust.
Senior RSS leader Ram Lal said in clear words that if stone pelting happens at two or four places in any corner of the country, then it is not right to call it a national problem of the entire country. He said that such incidents should not happen but it is also true that in a diverse society like India, not everyone can have the same thinking. Because of this diversity, dialogue becomes necessary. Giving the example of Christmas, he said that Christmas was celebrated peacefully in lakhs of places in the country, but if there was protest at 5-6 places, then it should be considered a local issue and not a crisis of the entire country.
What did the RSS leaders say?
Giving ideological depth to this discussion, senior RSS leader Dr. Krishna Gopal said that fringe elements are not a problem in themselves, but are symptoms of a deeper disease. He said, if we keep fighting only the symptoms and do not recognize the disease, then the solution will not be found. He also clarified that dialogue does not mean getting one’s point across, rather the real meaning of dialogue is listening to others. Indian tradition gives more importance to dialogue than conclusion.
Making an important ideological argument, Dr. Krishna Gopal said that the correct word is ‘Hinduness’ rather than ‘Hindutva’ because it is completely inclusive. He said that Hindu tradition does not exclude anyone. Kabir, Tulsi, Vivekananda, Khusro, Chishti tradition, all are part of the Indian cultural structure. Hinduness is a frame which has no limits. It is based on love and acceptance.
Zameeruddin Shah expressed concern
Expressing grave concern, Lieutenant General (Retd) Zameeruddin Shah said that the poison of hatred through social media has increased exceptionally in the last 3 years. He said that today the situation is such that being beaten just by asking one’s name is becoming common. This is a dangerous sign for any civilized society. He appealed to RSS that if the organization believes that 20 percent people are fringe then it is necessary to identify and control them because even a small faulty part of the machine jams the entire machine.
Many speakers in the dialogue agreed that social media and Hindi cinema are playing a big role in spreading hatred. It was said that if the top leadership gives a strict message then hate speech can stop automatically, because even today the society listens to the leadership.
Sharp questions from former LG of Delhi
The most sharp and sensitive question in this entire program was raised by former LG Najeeb Jung. He said, “When minorities are attacked, houses are demolished, lies are spread, then why does the Prime Minister of the country remain silent? Why doesn’t the Prime Minister, who speaks on every issue, say that we are all equal?” He said that when it is said that we all have the same DNA, then why are Muslims repeatedly questioned about their patriotism both in the country and abroad.
Najeeb Jung further said that history is being presented in a wrong manner. If temples were destroyed in the past, it happened during the era of new power or new culture. It is neither fair nor logical to blame today’s Muslims for that history. Najeeb Jung also said that cow slaughter is completely condemnable and Muslims should respect the broader sentiments of the country. He also strongly condemned the use of words like ‘kafir’. He said that tolerance cannot be one-sided, it should come from both sides.
In this dialogue held on the theme of Unity for Peace and Progress, senior RSS officials Dr. Krishna Gopal and Ramlal, former LG of Delhi Najeeb Jung, former Chief Election Commissioner S.Y. Qureshi, retired Lieutenant General Zameeruddin Shah, Khwaja Iftikhar Ahmed, Faizan Mustafa, Saeed Sherwani, Shahid Saeed (National Convenor, Muslim Rashtriya Manch), besides many speakers representing various classes and ideologies were present on the same stage.
read this also
‘TMC is the party of corruption, voters for infiltrators…’, Prime Minister Modi targeted Mamata Banerjee from Malda
