[Reader-list] Cracking down on ‘violations of moral code’ in Dakshina Kannada

[Pawan Durani]

Using an article to somewhat justify Dukhtar - E- Millet.....
Ignored !

On Mon, Sep 8, 2008 at 3:11 PM, Shuddhabrata Sengupta <shuddha at sarai.net>wrote:

> Dear Rohan,
>
> Many thanks for your post. It is no secret that the reactionaries of
> different denominations should see ground for natural alliances on
> limited issues. Self declared Christian fundamentalist outfits have
> actually often in the forefront of seeking bans on films and books in
> India, just as Muslim fundamentalists have been, and they tactfully
> decline to comment on Hindu fundamentalists when they do the same.
> There is a 'coalition of hurt sentiments' and 'prudery' that far
> outweighs the otherwise vitiated relationships between them. This is
> what causes the Islamist  'Dukhtaran-e-Millat' in Kashmir to
> occasionally mirror the rhetoric of their 'Durga Vahini' sisters in
> India.
>
> Incidentally, the disruption of the Graduation exhibition at the
> Faculty of Fine Arts at MS University Baroda, which was commented on
> this list, involved the active participation individuals aligned with
> the VHP and the Bajrang Dal in Gujarat as well as a Christian
> Pentecostalist Minister by the name of Immanuel Kant.
>
> regards
>
> Shuddha
>
>
>
>
> On 08-Sep-08, at 12:37 PM, Rohan DSouza wrote:
>
> > Dear All,
> >
> > This particular article on the front page of yesterday's Bangalore
> > edition
> > of the Hindu, caught my attention. This was for various reasons,
> > the main
> > one being of complete disgust in the way in which people from
> > different
> > communities are being forced not to interact with each other in the
> > Dakshina
> > Kannada district of Karnataka.
> >
> > When reading the report carefully, one also notices with some
> > intrigue, two
> > of the bed fellows of this moral brigade, ie, the right wing militant
> > Bajrang Dal and Social Action Committee, a Christian organisation.
> > While the
> > Bajrang Dal is known to specifically target members of the Christian
> > community in other parts of India, (the recent attacks in Orissa
> > come to
> > mind), in the instances mentioned here there is an actual coming
> > together of
> > interests and corresponding action, of these organisations claiming to
> > represent the two communities.
> >
> > While I subscribe to the fact that the Bajrang Dal and the Social
> > Action
> > Committee cannot be seen as sole representatives of Hindu and
> > Christian
> > interests, it will still be worth looking at the social situation
> > in this
> > region, which could tolerate something like this. The  Mangalorean
> > Christian
> > (Roman Catholic) community have been supporters of the Sangh
> > organisations,
> > especially the BJP. This seems to stem from the notion of their
> > Brahmanical
> > past (pre-conversion by the Portugese) as well as present, within the
> > Christian community set up. Casteist (Hindu & Chrisitian in this case)
> > feelings and bonds based on this seem to have superceded
> > differences of
> > religion here! Incidentally, similar notions of Brahmanical
> > ancestry and
> > superiority can also observed among the Syrian Christian community in
> > neighbouring Kerala.
> >
> > The coming together of the Hindu and the Chrisitian community, as
> > far as
> > aggressively expressing their political, social and moral
> > preferences in
> > this region, have ensured members of both communities dont interact
> > with
> > Muslims. This seeems to be designed to polarise and communalise the
> > region
> > (the Gujarat model, that CM Yediyurappa fawns over, in action?).
> >
> > The members (ex?) of the Islamic organisation, Karnataka Forum for
> > Dignity,
> > also seem to be playing along with this polarisation. The result of
> > which
> > will probably be a splintered social situation, with the Hindus and
> > Christians on one side of the divide and the Muslims on the other.
> > This has
> > earlier led to riots in this region and one can surely expect more.
> >
> > Taking advantaged of sentiments, emotions, based on actions,
> > reactions and
> > counter actions, seems to be the modus operandi of the three
> > organisations
> > mentioned in the article.
> >
> > Being distant as well as close, geographically and genetically, to
> > Dakshina
> > Kannada, has made me want to comment on this. However, this may be an
> > incomplete reading of the situation. Therefore would welcome comments,
> > thoughts on this.
> >
> > Regards,
> > Rohan
> >
> > http://www.hindu.com/2008/09/07/stories/2008090750160100.htm
> >
> > *Cracking down on 'violations of moral code' in Dakshina Kannada *
> > Sudipto
> > Mondal * In most cases, young men and women have been targeted *  —
> > file
> > Photo: K.R. Deepak
> >
> > * Watched: Young people such as these have become victims of the
> > vigorously
> > enforced 'moral code' in Dakshina Kannada. *
> >
> > MANGALORE: Self-appointed vigilante groups are cracking down on those
> > "violating the moral code" in Dakshina Kannada district. Records
> > with the
> > district police that *The Hindu *had access to show that since the
> > third
> > week of July there have been 10 instances of these groups punishing
> > individuals whom they perceived as having violated the moral code.
> >
> > Hindutva organisations such as the Bajrang Dal, a Christian
> > organisation
> > Social Action Committee, as well as certain individuals who were
> > formerly
> > with the Karnataka Forum for Dignity (KFD), have been involved in
> > these
> > incidents.
> >
> > In most of the incidents the groups have targeted young men and
> > women from
> > different communities who were interacting with each other. In one
> > case, a
> > young woman was attacked because she went to the house of a young
> > woman from
> > a different community.
> >
> > The Bajrang Dal has claimed responsibility for seven of these
> > incidents. *,
> > *The district head of the organisation, Sudarshan Moodabidri,
> > claimed that
> > the outfit had "solved" over 200 cases in the last two months where
> > Hindus
> > were "caught" committing the "immoral" act of interacting with
> > members of
> > other communities.
> >
> > Mr. Moodabidri said, "Sometimes it becomes necessary to use force.
> > Fear of
> > such action should deter such misadventures. Girls reform
> > themselves once
> > they are thrashed and humiliated in public, but boys are tougher to
> > control."
> >
> > The Social Action Committee carried out a "joint operation" with
> > Bajrang Dal
> > activists in the city in one instance. "We will carry out more such
> > strikes," its president Deepak D'Mello told *The Hindu*.
> >
> > Former activists of the KFD have been linked to two such cases. The
> > organisation's president Abdul Aziz said that the acts were
> > committed by
> > delinquent members and distanced KFD from the issue. He confirmed
> > that the
> > organisation was against inter-community relationships but was
> > averse to
> > using force.
> >
> > The latest incident occurred on September 2 at Vittla in Bantwal
> > taluk where
> > activists of the Bajrang Dal assaulted a couple, Roopashree and Vikhar
> > Ahmed, and paraded them in public. The same afternoon, over 60 km
> > away in
> > Puttur taluk, Bajrang Dal activists stormed the house of Ayesha as her
> > friend Divya was visiting her.
> >
> > On September 1, Sugandhi and her three friends, Raghav, Anil and
> > Rasheed,
> > were assaulted by Bajrang Dal activists when they were at a hotel
> > in the
> > heart of Mangalore city. On August 24, Deepa and her fiancé Abdul
> > Waheed
> > were dragged out of a bus at a junction in the city and assaulted
> > by Bajrang
> > Dal activists.
> >
> > On the afternoon of August 23, Bajrang Dal activists assaulted and
> > abused
> > classmates Julia, Robert, Waheed, Abdul and Sunil because they were
> > found
> > laughing and talking loudly in a public place.
> >
> > On August 22, activists of the Bajrang Dal and the Social Action
> > Committee
> > carried out the "joint operation" against Mohammed and his classmate
> > Catherine. On August 18, activists claiming to be from the KFD
> > assaulted
> > Dinesh and his friend Afshan at a remote village 25 km from the
> > city. They
> > were assaulted because Dinesh had brought medicines for Afshan who was
> > suffering from malaria.
> >
> > On August 8, activists of the Bajrang Dal assaulted Syed, Zulfikar
> > and Ameen
> > with soda bottles and hooks in a bus in the heart of the city
> > because they
> > had carried school bags belonging to a group of Hindu girls.
> >
> > On July 27, activists claiming to be from the KFD attacked Govind, an
> > autorickshaw driver at a village over 25 km from Mangalore because
> > he often
> > ferried his neighbours Uzma and Shaheen in his auto. On July 16,
> > Rehman was
> > heard talking and laughing loudly at a public place with his two
> > friends Uma
> > and Bhavya. They were assaulted and abused by Bajrang Dal activists.
> >
> > Superintendent of Police N. Sateesh Kumar said, "This is a social
> > issue.
> > Resistance to such divisive forces should come from within the
> > community. In
> > cases where there have been assaults we have taken the necessary
> > action."
> >
> > (Names of the victims have been changed to protect their identity)
> > _________________________________________
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> Shuddhabrata Sengupta
> The Sarai Programme at CSDS
> Raqs Media Collective
> shuddha at sarai.net
> www.sarai.net
> www.raqsmediacollective.net
>
>
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