The panic over the COVID-19 pandemic has deflected public focus from the economic crisis, discriminatory citizenship laws, the attack on civil liberties and the recent Delhi riots. With the rising levels of idiocy in a country, wherein religious bigots and politicians are in a position to convince citizens to roll in animal dung and consume cow urine as prevention and cure for the virus, it is not difficult for the government to sell any political abuse as being necessary in public interest. In Goa, we can see the rate at which anti-migrant hate is fast contaminating Goan minds. Many actually believe that cultivating such a primitive and barbaric mind-set is the answer to prevent demographic changes. It will hardly take time for such anti-migrant hate to be channelised for anti-Muslim hate, and Goans will not even know when their hands have been stained with innocent human blood. What is disturbing and shameful is the involvement of a section of the Goan catholic community, more so NRIs, in cheering such mindless hate campaigns.
The recent Delhi riots have exposed to the world a contradiction in the Indian culture which claims to be tolerant and peaceful, but also rejoices over crimes against humanity. One needs to be an ignoramus to believe that the Delhi riots were spontaneous. That these riots had nothing to do with religious prejudice, but were just a retaliation for the inconvenience caused to the public from anti-CAA protests.
This nation has witnessed enough communal riots, for those with some common sense, to understand the definite pattern and sequence of provocative events that precede the violent show down on the streets. It requires no rocket science to understand that the inconvenience caused to the public by anti-CAA protests became the convenient excuse for the perpetrators of the Delhi riots. And, the visit of Donald Trump to Delhi was the convenient moment chosen to mask the saffron violence as an Islamic retaliation aimed at disrupting the Indo-American meet. It was about damaging one temple to rationalise and justify the arson and desecration of 14 mosques and a dargah. From what preceded the Delhi riots, it is obvious that the provocation for the violence was the name, skull cap, burka, biryani and the very sight of a certain community asserting their constitutional rights on the streets, which became unbearable for jaundiced nationalists.
Even on the 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi, the Global Apostle of Non-Violence, this toxic cocktail of Casteism, Bigotry and Communalism which seeks legitimacy under a banner of Indian nationalism, simply refuses to give peace a chance to raise its head in our nation. The shudhshakahari cultural hypocrisy has absolutely no reservations when it comes to a barbaric appetite for violence against minorities, under some concocted pretext of defending nation, religion or culture.
From Gujarat to Kandhamal to Delhi via Uttar Pradesh, it’s the same stale filmy story-line. It’s about State complicity in shielding hate mongers and assisting rioters, delay in protecting the riot victims, the cover up by investigative agencies with one-sided arrests and tales about a minority driven conspiracy, which ultimately suggests Hindu innocence and Hindu triumph over anti-Hindu forces.
The saffron hate brigade behaves omniscient when it comes to knowledge about minority conspiracies and the funding sources for riots, even before investigations begin. The outcome of any investigation on communal riots has become predictable. Ultimately, it is the riot victims who will be paraded as villains before the courts while the actual culprits will go scot free to engineer another riot.
The desi hate virus often lies latent amidst the smiles and sweet talk in day-to-day social interactions on the street with so perceived liberals and seculars. It is this latent hate virus which gets activated for political polarisation. This is why we encounter defensive arguments like “why are you dragging religion into the riots?” Or, even veiled comments from those claiming to be liberal, such as “the riots (in Delhi) are a planned anti-national arson, positively funded by some insecure minority group or politician”. The masks worn by hate merchants, to disguise their political and religious prejudice, has more than often deceived liberals and seculars into lowering their guard and getting tricked into self-defeating social and political actions.
What is worrisome is that the political parties and civil society groups (CSG) continue to counter this destructive communal pogrom. The saffron hate merchants will probably also be allowed to have the last laugh in the recent Delhi riots, as was the case in the Anti-Sikh riots (1984), Gujarat riots (2002), the Kandhamal riots (2008) and several other communal riots. Nothing beyond blaming, horror stories and fishing in courts, when there are enough of visually documented clues available online from reputed international media agencies, showing how Hindutva’s schools are instilling hate in young minds.
The much hyped ‘Happiness curriculum’ in schools and the mushrooming of ‘Inter-religious Peace Dialogues’ are not in any way proving to be the effective antidote for this Desi Hate, which is silently and steadily destroying the secular and democratic fabric of this nation.
Quoting from various holy scriptures about teachings on love and peace and calling it a peace dialogue is hypocrisy.
What is needed for peace are ‘Hard Talk’ forums which facilitate the sensitising of citizens against the deep-seated myths and prejudices against certain communities which get propagated through hate speeches and visual media.
The need to develop an effective antidote, through innovative and participatory strategies, for repulsing this constantly mutating saffron hate virus is a socio-political emergency.
(The author is a Social
Activist)