Mr. Julio Ribeiro, retired IPS officer, former police commissioner
of Mumbai and DGP of Gujarat and Punjab,
recently said the following; ‘as a Christian, suddenly, I am a stranger in my
own country’. He is merely reflecting on the recent dilemma of the Christian
community in India
since the ascendance of Mr. Narendra Modi as Prime Minister. It is indeed a sad
commentary from a distinguished public servant who has served the country with
great zeal and dedication to protect and preserve its territorial integrity.
Today, scores of Indian Christians who have contributed in
so many ways towards the development of India especially in the social and
educational sectors are pained to feel the same way as Mr. Ribeiro does! As a
Christian and a member of the Diaspora, I truly share the sentiment of Mr.
Ribeiro and salute him for his fortitude in speaking out.
What exactly has happened to bring about such anxiety and
insecurity to such a small community that poses no harm to its fellow citizens?
The latest reports from India point to two more attacks targeting the Christian religious places of
worship, one at St. George Church in Navi Mumbai, Maharashtra and the other at
St. Peter and Paul Church in Jabalpur, Madhya Pradesh, along with two schools
that are managed by the churches.
These may have happened at the heel of another incident in
Nadia district in West Bengal where a 72 year old nun was gang raped by six
individuals at the Jesus and Mary
Convent School.
Reacting to the gang rape of the nun, Surendra Jain, joint secretary of the
Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) blamed the ‘Christian Culture’ for the incident. He
also justified the vandalizing of a church in Haryana and stated that these
attacks would continue if conversions do not stop.
Several churches in Delhi were vandalized and desecrated by
religious extremists in the past months including St. Sebastian Church in
Dilshad Garden which was reduced to ashes with its altar charred and Bibles
strewn all over the ground. Archbishop Anil Couto said that the arson in St.
Sebastian Church was condemnable not just because it was ann act of sacrilege
and hate against the community and its faith, but because it could happen in
the national capital which is recovering from a series of communal incidents.
Also distressing to him is the sense of police impunity that long hours were
lost, and possible evidences destroyed, before police finally came. Most of the
culprits still remain at large and the law enforcement officials seem to show
very little urgency in bringing them to justice.
These incidents are not just limited to certain parts of India but
happening across the country. The recent incident in a village in Chattisgarh
reveals the fear and insecurity of those who have embraced Christianity as
their faith. Sukhram Kashyap, a Christian from Chattisgarh, has not only seen
his church vandalized but was denied food rations from the Hindu dominated
village council and several of his friends were beaten up when they protested.
Some of his fellow worshippers were reconverted in an aggressive campaign
called ‘Ghar Wapasi’ by Hindu fundamentalists who have also banned any
Christian clergy from entering the village.
Breaking a long silence on this continuing onslaught by the
Hindutva brigade on Christians and their institutions around the country Prime
Minister Modi said the following; ‘the tradition of welcoming, respecting and
honoring all faiths is as old as India itself.’ One wonders whether
his ardent followers in BJP and RSS are
listening!
The President of Catholic Bishops Conference of India Cardinal Baselios Cleemis said that the recent attacks on churches and Christians in India have made many ‘feel that their Christian identity is being questioned and it gives a sense of sadness. It showed that not everybody had taken seriously Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s assurance to minorities’. ‘Irrespective of their faiths, anybody being attacked was an Indian citizen and it was the government’s duty to protect them’ Cardinal added.
In an interview to Karan Thapar on Headlines Today, Cardinal
Cleemis also described as “very painful and sad” the comments of RSS head Mohan
Bhagwat that Mother Teresa’s humanitarian works were driven by her motive to convert
those she served. “It was very painful and very sad to hear about Mother Teresa
whom the nation honored with Bharat Ratna,” he said.
There is no doubt that that Cardinal Cleemis spoke on behalf
of all Christians in India
that may very well include many of the faithful in the Diaspora. Although he
did not single out any organization over many of these incidents but went on to
criticize the Modi government for observing Christmas as Good Governance Day,
saying good governance should be done everyday and the Christian festival
should be respected.
One of the most astounding observations that can be made
about these attacks on minorities in India
is that there is a deafening silence on the part of the Diaspora in the US.
Hindu American Foundation, Vishwa Hindu Parishad of America, and GOPIO along
with many other organizations have decided to look the other way. Though
relatively new as immigrants to this great country, Indians continue to demand
our rightful place, justifiably so, at the table in sharing the riches and
defending our values and traditions while not tolerating any injustice that
offends our sensibilities. A huge segment of the community has indeed made
tremendous strides in this short period realizing the American dream and
integrating itself into the mainstream.
However, Christians in India who have lived there for
almost two millennia are made to feel as if they are strangers in their own
land. How a personal choice of faith that is guaranteed under the Article 25
and 26 of the Constitution of India could make or break the ‘Indian ness’ of
its citizenry is beyond the comprehension of any rational mind!
Undoubtedly, the forces of polarization and divisions have
come out of the woodwork and kept themselves busy transforming India at the expense
of the values and principles of inclusiveness and tolerance that brought the
nation together. The current Government’s dual-track policy of providing good
optics for the consumption of the global community while unleashing the
extremist forces to undo the social progress of the last 65 years, mostly under
the Congress rule, is troublesome and disheartening to most of its citizens!
President Obama in his Siri Fort speech prodded the new Government ‘India will succeed so long as it is not splintered along the lines of religious faith, as long as it is not splintered along any lines and it is unified as a nation’. It sounds prophetic and to plainly put it, unless the Prime Minister reins in these extremist elements that run amok now, his dream of ‘modern India’ could be in increasing peril!
What did the christians do against Hindus to attack them? Hindu word to term communalist by whom? Since RSS and BJP used religion to come to power, some will align with them. But using relgion for politics is simply not acceptable. It is not acceptable in the US. All Hindus in America will agree on this. If it is not ok here, is it ok in India? No. We should work against the double speak of fanatics here.
In Defense Of Hindus
Western media have embarked upon a crusade against Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Hindus. I use the word “crusade” because the campaign has been led by Western journalists, aided and abetted by the pseudo secular Indian press, who color their reporting with their Christian bias. Although the media have long been biased against Hindus, their bias has become particularly pernicious since Modi campaigned to become prime minister. In their hit pieces, the media refer to Modi and the BJP as “Hindu nationalist.” Why isn’t the Republican Party the “Christian nationalist party” or Presidents Jimmy Carter and George W. Bush “Christian nationalists”? In 2005, the U.S. denied Modi a visa for violations of religious freedom stemming from the 2002 Hindu-Muslim riots in Gujarat. The New York Times published an article entitled, “U.S. Evangelicals, Indian Expats Teamed Up to Push Through Modi Visa Ban,” in which the author admitted to having witnessed U.S. evangelical Christians spearheading the effort to deny Modi the visa despite his having been exonerated by the Indian Supreme Court. The media, however, have ignored the religiously motivated machinations of Christian evangelicals in denying Modi the visa. Recent articles about attacks on Christians in India are nothing more than Christian propaganda masquerading as journalism. The New York Times editorial board, in peddling this propaganda, wrote an editorial entitled, “Modi’s Dangerous Silence,” in which it accused Hindus of attacking Christians in India. Its proof? “Last December, St. Sebastian’s Church in East Delhi was engulfed in fire. Its pastor reported a strong smell of kerosene after the blaze was put out.” How do they know this was arson? Even if it was arson, how do they know it was committed by Hindu groups? If a temple in the U.S. now burns down, it must be arson committed by militant Christians? What is dangerous is not Modi’s silence but the baseless and inflammatory accusations being hurled at Hindus by Christians. Christians are outraged over the mass conversions being conducted by “hard-line Hindu nationalist groups.” While the media bemoan these “reconversions,” they forget to express outrage over the forced conversions of millions of Hindus by Christians. The media have ignored the Hindus’ complaints about evangelical Christians traveling from afar to target poor Hindus for conversion through deceptive and predatory tactics under the guise of charitable works. Christians, ironically, are trying to block the passage of an anti-conversion law in India. Apparently, Christians are proconversion so as long as they are the ones doing the converting. The media should be ashamed for allowing themselves to be used as the mouthpiece of Christian fanatics. The lies and distortions spread by the media have even reached President Obama. Obama, during the National Prayer Breakfast, invoked Mahatma Gandhi in saying he would be shocked at the “acts of intolerance” in India. Gandhi would be shocked at the acts of intolerance, but not by the Hindus. It would be by the Christians … or, perhaps not. Gandhi said: “I like your Christ. I do not like your Christians. Your Christians are so unlike your Christ.”
To the media: Stop your persecution of Hindus. In case you were wondering, I am not a Hindu – I am a Jain.അമേരിക്കയും ആയി ഒരു താരതമ്യവും നടത്തിയിട്ടുണ്ട്. അമേരിക്കയിൽ എവിടാ ഹിന്ദു നല്ല ഒരു സ്ഥാനത്തു ഇരിക്കുന്നത്? ഹിന്ദു ആരാധന നടത്താൻ അമ്പലം പണിഞ്ഞെടുത്തു എല്ലായിടത്തും തന്നെ പ്രശ്നങ്ങൾ അമേരിക്കയിലെ ക്രിസ്ത്യാനികൾ ഉണ്ടാക്കിയിട്ടുണ്ട്. അമേരിക്കയിലെ വിവേചനത്തിന്റെ കഥ രഹസ്യമല്ല. ഇന്ത്യൻ ക്രിസ്ത്യാനിക്കു തന്നെ വെള്ളക്കാരൻ-ക്രിസ്ത്യാനിയിൽ നിന്നു പ്രശ്നങ്ങൾ നേരിടുന്നില്ലേ? വെള്ളയല്ലാത്ത എല്ലാവർക്കും തന്നെ? അതുകൊണ്ടല്ലേ ഹാറളത്തു പള്ളിയിൽ കറമ്പർ മാത്രം പോവുന്നത്? ഹിസ്പാനിക്ക് പള്ളിയും, ബ്ലാക്ക് ചർച്ചും, ഇപ്പോൾ ഇന്ത്യൻ പള്ളികളും പൊങ്ങുന്നത് എന്തു കൊണ്ട്? അതെ സമയം കേരളത്തിലെ പ്രധാപ്പെട്ട എല്ലാ കവലകളും പള്ളികൾ കൊണ്ട് നിറഞ്ഞിട്ടുണ്ട്.
എവിടെയെങ്കിലും ഒരു പള്ളി ആക്രമണം ഉണ്ടായിട്ടുണ്ടെങ്കിൽ, ക്ഷേത്രങ്ങളും, മുസ്ലീം മോസ്ക്കുകളും അത് പോലെ ആക്രമിക്കപ്പെട്ടിട്ടുണ്ട്. വലിയ ഒരു ജനവിഭാഗങ്ങൾ പല വിശ്വാസങ്ങളിൽ ജീവിക്കുമ്പോൾ, പല തരക്കാരുണ്ടായിരിക്കുമ്പോൾ, അതൊക്കെ പ്രതീക്ഷിക്കാവുന്നതാണ്. ജൂതനും ക്രിസ്ത്യാനിയും ഇസ്ലാമിയും ആയി എത്ര ഘോരമായിട്ടാണ് തലമുറകളായി ഇസ്രായിലിൽ കൊല നടക്കുന്നത്? ക്രിസ്ത്യാനി ആണെന്നും പറഞ്ഞു എപ്പോഴും മുൻസീറ്റ് പിടിക്കാൻ ഒരു ജനാധിപത്യ ലോകത്ത് പറ്റില്ല. വെറും രണ്ടര ശതമാനക്കാരനായ ക്രിസ്ത്യാനിക്ക് വേണ്ടി പുഴുങ്ങിയതല്ല, മുതിര മുഴുവൻ എന്നുകൂടി കേരള ക്രിസ്ത്യാനികൾ അറിയണം. ക്രിസ്ത്യാനി വളരെ കൂടുതൽ നേടിക്കഴിഞ്ഞു. റിട്ടയർ ചെയ്തു കഴിഞ്ഞു ഹൂലിയൊയിക്കു രാഷ്ട്രീയത്തിൽ കളിക്കാമായിരുന്നു. പ്രസിഡണ്ടോ പ്രധാനമന്ത്രിയോ ഒക്കെ ആവാമല്ലോ? പാലായിലും ഭാരണങ്ങാനത്തും പറയുമ്പോലെ ക്രിസ്ത്യാനി ആയതുകൊണ്ട് വോട്ടു താ എന്നു ജനങ്ങളോടു പറയരുതോ?
After BJP came to power a series of attacks happened against Christians. What should the Christians do? Just ignore it? In america Hindus do not face any problem or discrimination. When a graffiti was painted on a temple recently, it was very seriously taken. The Hindus too made a commotion.
At the same time, Hindus here try to work against Christians wherever possible. When a Ten Commandment monument was a lagal problem, Hindu American Foundation joined the suit against it. At the same time they support a hindu rashtra in India! Republicans or George Bush never advocated for a Christian rastra. They have no private army like the RSS has.
Christians in India are sons of the soil. They have equal rights. In Texas after 9/11 a Hindu was murdered. The culprit was sent to the electric chair. Can we expect such justice in India? I remember the killing of a Graham Staines and his young children brutally and many justifying that.
As for Kerala Congress or Muslim League, they are not taking away something from Hindus. Though, I dont support them.
Attacking others, and then blaming them will not work for a nation.
മതേതരത്വം പ്രസംഗിച്ച് പ്രസംഗിച്ച് അവസാനം ഉള്ളിലുള്ള മതപരമായ ആവേശം അറിയാതെ പുറത്ത് വരും. കേരളത്തിലെ “സവര്ണ്ണ” കൃസ്ത്യാനികള് എന്ന് മേല്വിലാസമുള്ളവര് അവര്ണ്ണ വിശ്വാസികളോട് കാണിക്കുന്ന വിവേചനത്തിന്റെ കഥ കൂടി എഴുതുക.