Religious Polarization in India

L V Nagarajan

When I was a school boy, I was in small town near Madurai in South India. I was living with my parents, uncles, cousins and grandparents, in a joint family, for about 18 years. I graduated at the age of 18 and came to Mumbai for a Job in BARC in 1962. In my small native town, I was living in a Brahmin street (Agraharam). In those days it was common to have such areas in small towns, like, Mudaliyar Kottai, Pillaimar Theru, Saibu Pettai, Rowthar Street, based on castes, religion and culture. Some of my friends and classmates from these areas come to our street to play with us. There had never been any cast-clashes, way back in 1950s and 60s.

1. In my town, in the local Mariamman Temple, one day’s festival is sponsored by Rowthar community of Muslims. The procession, dressing and decoration will all be in a typical Muslim style.
2. In the Ratha Utsav, the chariot pulling right is given to SC/ST people and they would not lose this right to anybody, come-what-may.
3. My grandfather was one of the sponsors for the Ashura festival of Muslims in our town.
4. Christmas Carols visit a few prominent Brahmin houses and spread the blessings of Jesus Christ on the whole Brahmin community.
5. The sandal pastes, agar batthis and perfumes for religious and social festivals are always supplied by a Muslim shop keeper.

Things had drastically changed by 1980s. Earlier the reservation policy covered only SC (18%) and STs (1%). As we all understood, this is a good initiative and we all supported this affirmation policy. Later in late 1970 onwards, Tamil Nadu govt. introduced 23.5% reservation for other backward classes (BCs). This was not accepted by many communities, as most of them wanted reservation after SC/ST, to be based only on economic backwardness. This dislike for the policy took another dimension when many castes and sub-castes fought for inclusion in the above BC category. The Mandal Commission, or the Socially and Educationally Backward Classes Commission (SEBC), was established in India on 1 January 1979 by the Janata Party government under Prime Minister Morarji Desai with a mandate to “identify the socially or educationally backward classes” of India. However in the meantime, pressure groups started developing among various castes and sub-castes claiming quota of reservations for them also. This led the progressive state of Tami Nadu, to have many caste based political parties and associations. Thus instead of just removing caste barriers in human development, the expanded reservation policy has also brought up many more caste barriers in other social areas

Tamil Nadu did not wait for the Mandal Commission report. TN Govt implemented further 26.5% reservation for what they called it as Other Backward Classes (OBC), thus raising the total reservations to 67%. But this move by Govt had only widened the competition by people of many castes demanding to be included in this MBC or OBC. Those who are not included in any of these categories were called as Forward Caste (FC), irrespective of their social and financial status. This naturally angered them and they filed a petition in the High Court and Supreme Court. The courts ruled that at least 50% of Government jobs and Education admissions should be based on merit and not to be under any quota system. But this did not stop TN Govt under Jayalalitha to pass a  Tamil Nadu Act of 1994. After a demand for the scheme to have constitutional Protection, the act was adopted in 1993 by the Assembly and got the same included in the 9^th Schedule of the constitution. This included reservation of seats in education and employment for backward classes, and scheduled castes and tribes.  

At about the same period, another injustice was brought to light. The social backwardness arising out of caste system is considered as a typical nature of Hindu community. Muslim community was considered as a casteless one (!). Hence they were not eligible for any reservation, however socially and economically backward they were. Indian constitution also is against any reservation based on religion. However most of the Indian Muslims were earlier belonging to one of the oppressed classes of Hindu community. They converted to be Muslims either in the hope that they can escape caste discrimination or because of some other socio-political and economic incentives.

Hence the Muslims of India knowing or unknowingly became a vote bank of Islamic Political parties right from late 1970s. This is the beginning of religious polarisation in India. At about the same time the ‘Ram Janmabhoomi’ movement was spearheaded by the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) and supported by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and gathered momentum in the late 1980s. This along with minority appeasement policy of ruling Congress helped Muslims to stick together and vote en-block for Congress.

Since then at every election, be it for state assemblies or the Parliament, the poles of religion  started diverging, to start with, in the North, and gradually to the South also. Of late, majority of the Muslims have realised that they have been exploited by all political parties including the Congress. However their reactions are varied. Those who suffered because of Partition have unwisely started supporting Pakistan and the cross border terrorism. Those who were disturbed because of Babri Masjid demolition became more ardent supporters of Mughal invaders and their atrocities. Those who did not like the resultant Hindu resurgence became sacrificial goats for Islamic movements like ISIS etc. Luckily majority of the Muslims applied their mind instead of heart and started taking the path of education and enlightenment and retained their innate Indianness or Bharatiya. It is this majority of Muslims who is going to contribute restoring India’s true secular society that existed before Mughal invasion.    

We can already see the sign of such moderation among Indian Muslims, talking some sense into others. Zakia Soman is a women’s rights activist and a founding member of Bharatiya Muslim Mahila Andolan, which played a major role in abolition of ‘triple talaq’ rule among the Muslims. She writes in an article in Times of India, in October 2020 on polarization in India, ‘Muslims should have conceded the birth place of Lord Ram’.

Yes, I was also a remote witness to the demolition of Babri Masjid thru TV screens. Though you cannot blame any specific leaders of the Ram Janmabhoomi movement for this incident, some of them did talk in an inciting manner, but nothing more than what Owaisi brothers are doing now. But to conclude that to be the reason for the demolition is rather childish. Yes, it was a criminal act by a few; but we had the TV footage; could have identified exactly the individuals involved in the act and could have punished them severely. There is absolutely no point in filing a case on all the people who led the Ram Janma Bhoomi movement. This is the reason why people suspect the intention of the so-called seculars.

India is a land where people of different faiths co-existed for many centuries even before the occupation by Mughals. When Mughal thugs forced the conversion on Hindus, Indian Muslims did not support them. In my younger days I have never heard the word Jihad or Kafir.  But I have heard some Hindu preachers mention ‘Mlechcha’ when they refer to Muslims, but many of them added a foot note saying that they mean people like Aurangazib and Malik Kafur, and not the Indian Muslims.

When Muslim intellectuals chose the list of visionaries from freedom struggle, who laid the foundation of plural democracy in India, they were very careful in avoiding some people like Jinnah Saheb, who helped trisecting this nation on religious basis. They were also very careful to avoid one person, Mr. Sirdar Vallab Bhai Patel, who prevented one more dissection of our country on religious basis in the Deccan area.

There was a time when Indian Muslims were different from other Muslims of the world.   Those were times when the Indian Muslim respected the Christian teacher who taught English to his son equally with the tutor from local Mosque who taught him Quran. Those were the times when a child who was later to become the Shankaracharya of Kanchi Mutt stood first in his Bible class in a local school. Those were the times Christmus Carols used to visit prominent Hindu houses spreading the blessings of Jesus. In those days cross religious faiths need not result in conversion.

Compare the situation now: Indian Muslims have more affection towards Rohingyas and Tablighis than towards the real Indian Muslims like Abdul Kalam. If the Kerala Governor, who is a Muslim, visits a temple they issue a fatwa against him. If Kasab is hanged, he is being celebrated as a hero by Indian Muslims. I can keep on quoting several such misconducts by Indian Muslims which are basically designed to polarize this country on religious basis, to whose benefit I wonder!

“Appeasement of Muslims” is often referred to, as though it is non-existent, like many treat the term “Love-Jihad” as though it is piece of fiction. The biggest minority appeasement was the fraudulent Sachar Committee report. The report says Muslims are the poorest and least resourceful in India. All of us know “the poorest and least resourceful” Hindus were the target of forced and incentivised conversion in to Islam, since a very long time. They were already “the poorest and least resourceful” before they became Muslims and not because they were Muslims. However I am always for affirmative action, and reservations in jobs and education, for socially and economically backward citizens of India. 

Now as far as polarization is concerned, tell me which community vote en-block in any election on the advice given usually during mass prayers, by a local leader? It is very easy to prove me wrong. Please let me have the statistics: How many Muslims are elected from Hindu Majority Constituencies and how many non-Muslims are elected from Muslim Majority constituencies?

Many of the nationalist Muslim intellectuals come out with one advice for Muslims which is now useless, i.e, ‘Muslims should have conceded the birth place of Lord Ram’. Instead of such useless advice, can they take up with Bharatiya Muslim community and advice them promptly in the following matters also:

1. It is an accepted historical fact that several Hindu Temples were destroyed to build Mosques not by Indian Muslims but by Mughals. The Muslim community may setup committees to historically check the facts, and wherever they can establish truth of demolition of Hindu Temples, they can offer the site to Hindus to rebuild their Temples.
2. The Hindus, on their part, should not insist on complete rewriting of religious history that could endanger the beautiful diversity of India.
3. The Muslim Community should desists from annexing even the existing disused temple sites and instead help Hindu to rebuild the same.
4. Muslim community should disengage themselves from forced and incentivised conversion. On the contrary, they should propagate the values of Islam which people can follow without the need of converting to Islam. (like in olden times)
5. As a community they should discourage the use of religious gatherings such as in Mosques or Idgas for political propaganda
6. Last but the most important, they should maintain their identity of Indian Muslims, instead of subjugating themselves to ISIS, Rohingyas or Tablighis.

Indian Muslim community is the second largest in the world, even larger than in Pakistan, the first largest being Muslims of Indonesia. I feel Indian Muslims should have a greater say among international Muslim community. They should influence the Muslims of the world to follow the path of secularism, which just does not mean, just tolerance alone, it means acceptance of other religions also.   

Before you call me names as BIGOTS or Rightists, like all other pseudo seculars, let me state below my religious orientation.

1. I was in Dubai with family for about 15 years. Whenever I am invited by my colleagues and friends for Iftar opening during the holy month of Ramzan, I also used to fast on that day.
2. My technician was one Abid Hussain from Pakistan. Whenever I need some maintenance on any of my appliances, he will finish his Friday Prayers, come home, attend to the appliance, have lunch with me, see an Indian movie along with me and my family and then go home late in the afternoon, with dinner from my house packed.
3. My driver was one Eid Wali Khan, a Pathan from Pakistan. Any guests or visitors come to my house, he volunteers as a guide cum driver to take them around Dubai and UAE.
4. One of my lady cousins has married an Indian Muslim and both have migrated to US. We visit them whenever we are in the US. It is a pleasure to see them live happily with a healthy mixture of Indian Hindu/Muslim culture, which of course would not have been possible in India.

So I am secular in a Hindu way of acceptance (and tolerance).

Long Live India’s Social Secularism

Tags: Religion, Secularism, Spirituality