A section of born-Hindus revels in the contrived pretences of the so-called composite culture (aka Ganga-Jamuni tehzeeb); and gimmicks like Hindus paying obeisance to Muslim saints at dargahs. They have a right to revel in whatever they like but the fact remains that these are exercises in self-delusion. All such gimmicks could be lauded had they served to promote communal harmony even one little bit. However, as the record of communal strife in the country attests, they have been singularly useless.
These people generally like to be described as ‘progressive’ and ‘liberal’ Hindus. True leftists, being atheists, are excluded. The characteristic feature of these people is their passion to deride and denigrate Hindu religion, and that is why they have become ‘the enemy within’.
Double Standards of the ‘Liberal and Progressive’ Hindus
They do not have any problem at all if people shout Allahu Akbar or ‘Bharat tere tukde honge, Insha Allah’ in universities but take serious offence at Jai Shri Ram (JSR) slogan even in cricket stadiums. In their view, the raising of JSR during the India-Australia test match at Ahmedabad in March 2023 was very bad because the slogan was raised with the name of a Muslim cricketer. This is ridiculous. Had they abused the cricketer, insulted his religion, or threaten him or his community in any way? No! Is there a law which says that one cannot use JSR with the name of a Muslim, or that he must necessarily be greeted with Muslim religious sentences or none? No! To describe it as an utterly shameful act clearly shows their bias against Hindus.
Muharram processions and Kanwar yatras are both allowed under the same provision of the Police Act. They do not have any problem with Muharram processions even if, in many instances, electricity supply wires across streets have to be cut by the administration causing great inconvenience to a large number of people because the procession insists that the Tazia or the Alam shall not be lowered under any circumstance. Yet, they have serious problems with the Kanwariyas whom they describe as hoodlums.
They observe Omerta over abominable incidents like those of pelting stones on Kanwar yatras from mosques or even spitting on Mahakal procession but ‘explode’ in indignant rage if there is a scuffle over playing of music in front of mosques, even as it is allowed by the Supreme Court.
Justifying Illegal Acts to Show Their So-Called Broad-Mindedness
You may recall that the Haryana government had disallowed the offering of namaz in public places because there are Supreme Court and High Court judgments prohibiting the use of public places for ‘regular religious activities’. Some Hindu activists had also been protesting against that. However, in Gurugram, some Hindus had come forward asking the Muslims to offer namaz in their garages, workshops etc. If they had a genuine desire to promote communal amity, their gesture was laudable. However, they knew that their gestures were preposterous. Offering private space for 15-20 people would not have helped the requirement of thousands nor solved the issue in any way. That is why; though the Muslim community was thankful, they declined the offer. The Muslim community knew that if they agreed to offer namaz on other people’s private property, the logical consequence would be that they could do it in their homes as well.
Then, we must ask, why such an offer was made in the first place. It was, of course, their property, and they had every right to do whatever they liked with it. But, given the impracticality of their gesture, most Hindus inferred that they had done it out of sheer spite; essentially to tell the Hindu activists that they despised them.
The same progressive Hindus take a very ‘liberal’ view of encroachments on public lands through Mazars, etc. and vehemently criticize any public protest over them or government action to clear them.
Ridiculing Hindu Religiosity but Admiring Others’
These deluded Hindus amongst Hindus ridicule everything connected with display of Hindu religiosity as primitive and regressive (dakiyanoosi and ponga-panthi in vernacular). Making fun of Hindu religiosity is considered a sure sign of being liberal and progressive. On the other hand, the display of others’ religiosity is regarded as a virtue and respect. For example, one who sports a skull cap or a Cross is regarded as piously religious, whereas one who wears a tilak or God forbid, a ‘shikha’, is looked down upon as if he has escaped from some primitive tribe living in deep forests! If Hindu school kids in an English medium school happen to greet other kids or teachers with ‘Jai Shri Krishna’, they could be punished for violating school norms.
As per law [sections 295A IPC, 153A, 505(2) (c)], no one should ‘insult’ a religion or its Essential Religious Practices in a manner that outrages the religious feelings of the followers of that religion. It applies even if the accused himself happens to belong to the religion in question. Now, have you ever found a Muslim who is critical of the ritual slaughter of hundreds of thousands of animals at Mecca on Eid al Adha on the ground that, until recently, the surplus meat used to be burnt or buried to reduce the surplus and to prevent a sanitation crisis. The Flash freezing and shipping out of the meat overseas under the Saudi Project for the Utilisation of Hajj Meat (Hady & Adahi) was introduced only in 2022. We, for example, do not have any problem with this or, for that matter, any other religion’s practices. Whatever a religion dictates, its followers are obliged to follow, and no one should have any problem as long as no law of the land is violated. On the other hand, every reader must have come across liberal and progressive Hindus who severely criticize devotees’ offering of milk to the Shiv Linga (dugdhabhiskek). They instantly reel off statistics of malnourished children in the country and curse the devotees for having wasted precious milk instead of giving it to the poor kids. Duplicitous, isn’t it?
They also make great fun of the organizing of events like the recitation of Sundar Kand of Ramcharit Manas at Hindu households. However, religious discourses at the houses of people of other religions are regarded as living proofs of their devotion and piety.
Calibrated Cultural Assault on Hindus through the Entertainment Media
Hindu religious beliefs have been made fun of much more often than Muslim religious beliefs in the entertainment media (films, TV serials, OTT web series, etc). It was pointed out in an article in the First Post that the Aamir Khan film ‘PK’ attacked primarily core Hindu beliefs and not those of the other faiths. Yet, the film grossed Rs. 449 crore in the domestic market and Rs. 770 crores worldwide—courtesy of the deluded Hindus. An article on Medium.com discusses a large number of films that ridicule Hindu gods. We call it a calibrated cultural assault on the Hindus’ cultural sensibilities and all things the Hindus cherish. The idea is to target, under the garb of entertainment, that segment of the Hindu population which is susceptible to the influence of the silver screen, and thus lower the esteem in which they hold their religion through a disproportionately negative portrayal of the Hindus and the Hindu religion.
They Never Talk of Reciprocity
Reciprocity and mutual respect are the prerequisites of a healthy relationship amongst communities—no one can be allowed to have a ‘special status’ that only takes but never gives. Yet, the progressive and liberal Hindus do the exact opposite. They have moved heavens to make the Hindus feel as if the entire responsibility of maintaining communal harmony is theirs and theirs alone. I have never found them advocating reciprocal gestures from the other communities. If Hindus (even if from political parties) could organize Iftar parties for Muslims, why don’t they too organize similar parties at some Hindu festivals? Why don’t they come forward to offer even sherbet to Hindu religious processions? For communal harmony to be real, it has to be a mutual affair, not a one-sided one.
Attempts to Pull Down the Hindus
An article in OpIndia pointed out that even before the Ayodhya verdict was pronounced, Hindus were asked to keep calm. Hindus were asked to not offend the Muslim community. Hindus were asked not to celebrate the culmination of a five-century-old battle for a piece of land their faith was inextricably tied to. Hindus were asked to not consider this a victory. Essentially, Hindus were told that any celebration would mean a direct instigation of the Muslim community. The author calls it inducing Survivor’s Guilt. The idea was to make the Hindus feel that they really did not ‘deserve’ the victory; their ‘victory’ was not rightful; the ‘rightful side’ had lost; there was no justice in their triumph; and while they got what they wanted, they should hang their heads in shame.
If Hindu political leaders happen to offer ‘chadar’ at dargahs for whatever reasons, it is hailed as secularism; however, if they happen to participate in the ‘pran pratishtha’ puja of a temple, it is called a grossly communal act.
Also Read: Dress code in Hindu temples – a necessity?
Generations of students have been ‘forced’ to regard the medieval period as the Sultanate era and the Mughal Age, and are expected to memorize their wars of plunder, rape, rapine and succession as if they were the most honourable thing to have happened to this land. The histories and valorous spirit of those Hindu warriors and kings who sacrificed their lives for the honour and freedom of the Motherland were relegated to insignificance.
Details of Muslim administration are lovingly taught and ancient Hindu polity and governance are largely ignored. The great, outstanding achievements made by the ancient Hindus in the fields of mathematics, astronomy, civil engineering, architecture, metallurgy, chemistry, medicine, literature, philosophy and almost every aspect of culture have either been eliminated from the syllabi or severely downplayed by the liberal and progressive Hindu lobby with the active support of Nehru. Not stopping at that, they pounce upon the Hindus if they demand any revision of the syllabi, alleging that they seek to saffronize or communalize education through the ‘glorification’ of the Hindus.
Just Delusion or Some Deep Conspiracy?
To start with, it was a sort of Stockholm Syndrome. Military defeats at the hands of the invaders and centuries of subjugation made some people lose faith in their own religion even if they were not obliged to convert, and they started ‘believing’ in the value system of the invaders as inherently superior. This ‘identification’ with the outsiders also made them believe that if they discarded the core values of Hinduism as deadwood, they would become somewhat superior.
However, the obstinate and methodical persistence with which they assail the Hindus even now makes one strongly suspect that they are not just deluded but are part of a Grand Conspiracy to defame Bharat, denigrate Hinduism, vilify ancient Hindu culture, and divide Hindus on the basis of caste. Since they have not formally abandoned Hinduism, their persistent derision of Hindus would amount to self-flagellation, which would make their position untenable. This makes the case of a conspiracy strong even if no evidence is available immediately. Advertently or inadvertently, they have become pawns in the hands of the Left-Liberal-Muslim Right cabal in furthering their Grand Design of enfeeblement of the resurgent Hindus.
The ‘corruption’ of education presided over by Nehru and his cohorts with their ‘unconcealed’ hatred of ancient Hindu heritage ensured that the Hindu youth who received their education after independence lost all touch with their roots. The next step of the ‘enemy within’ was to spawn more like them. Rootless and rudderless Hindus were brainwashed into hating their own glorious heritage as something regressive and primitive, thereby creating a vicious circle.
