Three incidents during the last three days, ostensibly unrelated, are actually deeply inter-connected. And all these three incidents underline the fact that Hindus are a persecuted community, not only in Bangladesh and Pakistan, but in secular, socialist and democratic India too.
Persecution complex is a terrible malaise and it does not behove a community that is in majority, for now, in a country. However, denying the realities on the ground too is a foolish way to deal with life and the world. Closing eyes like a hare in face of stark threat to existence is no way to deal with civilisational and existential issues for any community or people.
These are only three incidents that have found the favour of the national media to be highlighted enough. There may be several other such incidents in the country on the same three days that might have gone unreported. A Hindu being killed, raped, persecuted, converted, evicted, beaten, assaulted, maimed, forced to migrate or disgraced is hardly a topic anyone in the world is interested in.
Do you know the name of the 18-year-old who died in Munger firing while trying to protect Maa Durga’s idol. A safe guess is that you did not care to know. No Hindu ever does.
Do you know that an IAS officer is being hailed by none other than District Collectors (IAS) of India and other IAS officers for having made a bold statement by openly interfering in Hindu faith-based traditions in Shoolini Temple in Himachal Pradesh?
Association of DCs is patting her back for this open interference.
Do Hindus even care?
And a young 20-year-old college going Nikita Tomar was brutally killed by shooting in head in broad daylight by Touseef and Rehan in Ballabhgarh, Faridabad for allegedly not converting and marrying Touseef.
Do you care? Did you even ever hazard a guess how many such incidents have taken place in your own mohalla, township, state or country during the last one month, or one year?
Any guess? Any wild guess?
The fact is no one cares.
We do read about incidents of persecution of Hindus in Bangladesh and Pakistan and their forced conversion, rapes, killings, vandalism in mandirs on fairly regularly basis.
Do you even know the place where Durga Ma’s idol was desecrated in Bangladesh this year? Or the name of the minor girl recently abducted, converted and married off in Pakistan?
Safe guess is ‘no’. You don’t care. Because Hindus find bliss in ignoring civilisational torture against them. The natural response of Hindus and Hindu community is to feel sorry and then move ahead in life. In the process, they also utter wise phrases like – all are not bad, all religions are good and bad, there are bad elements in every community, Pakistan is a basket case, Bangladesh is going on extremist path and finally, Hindus are doomed, what to do.
The fact that Indian democracy is not secular in its responses and dealing with Hinduism is clear and self-evident.
No IAS officer can even dare to dream of forcing any change whatsoever in any practice in a mosque or a church in India.
However, the case of Hindus is different. They are everyone’s favourite target to make a ‘liberal, secular, modern, educational, atheist’ point. It is a laboratory where you can practice your administrative, managerial, writing, opinion-making, speech giving, artistic skills by vandalising, spoiling, breaking, violating, destroying the deeply-rooted civilizational and religious ethos of Hindus.
This is because no one cares.
PMs do not feel it necessary to tweet on this. CMs don’t feel the need to announce a compensation, opposition leaders don’t feel it necessary to make a visit and console the victims and Hindus do not feel the need to create any outrage. No editorials in Washington Post or New York Times either. No interntional human rights associations would issue a statement. There is no organisation of Hindu countries to issue a condemnation statement with veiled threats and warnings of a massive, world-wide boycott of products either.
No one cares, because Hindus of India themselves don’t care.
