In the wake of the ‘Ink Attack’ on Engineer Rashid, our dear President Pranab Mukherjee came out with some wise words for our fellow citizens in troubled times such as these. Although one might agree that his words, on the face of it, seem Honest and Noble, the factual validity of his assertions is subject to scrutiny. And a casual glance at his words reveal that although Mr. Pranab’s Mukherjee intentions might be pure, his perspective on History may very well be riddled with distortions.
President Mukherjee proclaims, “Indian Civilization has survived for 5000 years because of its tolerance.” Well, President Mukherjee, I am pretty sure Tolerance did play a part in ensuring the survival of Indian Heritage and Traditions but at the same time, I am afraid, showering Tolerance with all the credits is being a bit unfair to our great ancestors who fought valiantly against the Abrahamic forces which have invaded our land in the past. Also, having a Scientific Temperament ingrained in our Culture and Great Monarchs and Dynasties who served as Great Patrons of Art and Literature and built strong and prosperous Hindu Empires meant that they built a legacy which could not be easily washed away by the Sands of Time. Also, what one should never forget that the Indian Civilization survived because thousands and thousands of Hindus sacrificed their lives to protect and preserve our Culture and Heritage and Our way of Life.
If History teaches us anything, it is this, the Indian Civilization has survived because in the Darkest of Times, our ancestors vowed to never give up and rather greet Death with open arms than be conquered. And since Humanity has progressed from War with Swords to a War with Words, our civilization has already and will keep producing great Wielder of Words who will rise up with pens instead of swords to ensure that Our Heritage and Culture is never forgotten. And frankly, Tolerance is an integral part of our Culture but it has very little to with Survival. As George Orwell said, “Those who abjure violence can only do so because others are committing violence on their behalf.”
“Indian Civilization has always accepted dissent and differences.” “We have a Constitution that accommodates all these differences.” Well, President Mukherjee , Indian Civilization tolerates Dissident and Differences because of our Pagan Heritage. As needs no mention, Pagan traditions are naturally pluralistic which is in stark contrast with the Abrahamic religions which thrive on Conformity and Rigid Control of Human Behavior in accordance with Laws mandated by ‘Divine Revelations.’ As for our Constitution accommodating all such differences, it is merely an observation or a statement of fact, it may or may not be a good thing. And I guess we can agree that it is definitely not a good thing. Our Constitution accommodates Sharia for matters of Muslim Personal Law which relegates women to the status of Second Class citizens. From Shah Bano who was denied alimony by her husband to the woman who was recently divorced by her husband from Dubai over WhatsApp, our accommodation of such differences hasn’t worked too well for a significant population of women in our country.
Again, President Mukherjee asks us to eliminate the ‘Divisive Forces.’ Well, Mr. President, you also ask us, “Is Tolerance and acceptance of Dissent on the wane?” Well, what if the Divisive forces complain that we are being intolerant towards them when we try to eliminate their influence? What if the Divisive Forces control the narrative over who’s promoting Hate and Intolerance? It is quite obvious they won’t blame themselves for it and pick the easiest target as their scapegoat, the Right-wing Government. Well, of course, I am blaming the Mainstream Media and the ‘Intellectuals’ for creating the image of rising intolerance and sparking an atmosphere of intolerance by rewarding particular cases of Intolerance with attention and political relevance. Blatant Operant Conditioning at display, dear folks. And applying a little bit of Star Wars analogy, if the movies were made from the Point of View of the Sith Lords, we all know who would be painted as Evil, don’t we?
President Mukherjee also makes various generic statements about how Humanity and Pluralism must be preserved and how Righteousness must rise to conquer the Forces of Evil. The fact that President Mukherjee doesn’t make any statement or remarks implicating the Government at the Center for rising Intolerance, I am afraid that little bit of information will be lost on the MSM as they launch another vicious tirade against the NDA government. The fact that President Mukherjee actually makes an appeal to the people of the nation will be willfully ignored as the MSM delight on the fact that they have just been handed more ammunition to attack the Government with. And regrettably, President Mukherjee ‘s words will have as little impact at curbing intolerance as Suresh Raina’s innings on the Scoreboard yesterday. And that is perhaps the greatest Irony, words calling for Peace and Harmony might actually end up adding fuel to the Fire of Intolerance.
