[Reader-list] Fwd: Temples Of Mirpur

[Rajendra Bhat Uppinangadi]

Recipes and books for them are written by many, how many can cook well.?
Regards,

Rajen.



On Sun, Aug 2, 2009 at 12:52 AM, Rakesh Iyer <rakesh.rnbdj at gmail.com> wrote:

> Dear Malik ji
>
> On a personal experience based note, I can agree that there are Muslims who
> like to live among themselves only, and so also there are some Hindus I
> have
> seen who are like that. I personally believe that it is and yet is not a
> problem, depending on the side one looks at.
>
> If what you said is true and it happens because Muslims don't feel secure
> among Hindus, then it is shameful and I think both sides should try and
> bridge over the problem. It is extremely unfortunate that such incidents
> occur even in the 21st century when Muslims feel secure only among Muslim
> colleagues and vice versa for Hindus. And anyways, a wrong act is a wrong
> act, whether it be done by a Hindu or a Muslim or anyone else.
>
> The divide today is particularly increasing with growing democratization of
> power in Indian politics. Some of our intellectuals have a tendency to
> celebrate this growing democratization of power in India, with the growth
> of
> a multi-party democracy being heralded as power being transferred to the
> masses. This is a totally bogus claim when looked in reality, particularly
> in the northern states of this country but substantially true in other
> parts
> of the nation as well.
>
> The fact of the matter is that in most parts of the country, this so-called
> 'democratization' has come about with the view that political power is the
> only way to redress grievances and in fact be the 'lords' over the masses.
> Hence, the elites or particular groups across different castes and
> communities have decided to fight to secure political power with the view
> to
> perpetrating their own dynastic or clan rule over the masses and thereby
> enrich themselves, and also show their paternalist streak or mannerisms in
> order to show off as being 'concerned' towards the plight of the people.
>
> On the other hand, education and health, as well as a humane and just
> administration, which could have helped in truly solving the problems of
> the
> people take a back-seat, simply because once that takes place, then
> irrespective of whoever forms the govt., the people would be able to live
> peacefully, and then these personalities and groups would not be able to
> claim fame and great name for themselves, so also the opportunity to earn
> billions through dubious ways. All way to proper democratization, like
> people's struggles to get employment, to get information about functioning
> of the govt. as well as even in the Right to Food case, as well as solving
> other problems, is simply a fodder for newspapers to be only thrown into
> garbage if such issues gain some space in them.
>
> Therefore, this is not democratization but simply fragmentation of
> political
> power and its availability from a small group of people to a slightly
> larger
> group of people who can now lay claim over it. The rest is all bogus.
> Dalits
> suffer under Mayawati. Yadavs don't get genuine development or good HDI
> (human development index) figures under Mulayam's rule. Jats and Gurjars on
> gaining power through acquisition of land and political power indulge in
> goondaism of the worst kind in some parts of UP and sometimes in Rajasthan
> as well. Some of the backward castes in AP and Tamil Nadu also indulge in
> caste discrimination of vicious kinds, although such instances are very
> less
> when compared to North India and are harshly condemned as a result of which
> they are not that widely prevalent or easy to practice.
>
> The result is that within the society, the Muslims, the Dalits, the
> Gurjars,
> the different castes and minority religions, (the people belonging to them
> that is), think that the only way they can get their problems solved is
> simply acquiring political power, and the rest will automatically fall in
> line. Also, this kind of fragmentation pits them in competition with other
> groups, which means that they feel secure only within their own group. And
> the end result is the kind of behavior you have experienced.
>
> The behavior of competition and feeling of insecurity within a diverse
> group
> is due to political compulsions entering personal lives. Of course,
> political compulsions of other kinds also come to the party in ensuring
> this. For example, the insecurity among the Muslims thanks to the BJP rule
> or Hindutva based organizations ensures that Muslims also don't trust
> Hindus
> that much, and soon we have 'mini-Pakistans' (the name given to
> Muslim-dominated demographic regions in cities of India). And if it's a
> worse kind of case, like in say Gujarat, we have borders as well. (Like in
> Vejalpur area of Ahmedabad, there is a fencing referred to as the
> 'border').
> And in certain cases, the so-called 'secular' parties feed on this
> segregation to try to get Muslims behind them and become politically
> powerful.
>
> This is not what was supposed to be achieved. And hence the only solution
> to
> this is to actually fight for true democratization, and the inter-mingling
> of people across various castes, religions and diverse backgrounds and
> sexes. Moreover, there needs to be an appreciation for this as well, and
> this can only be developed through interaction and education, for value
> systems are one thing our education only can inculcate. Unfortunately, even
> the education curriculum and syllabus in India are so prejudiced and
> manipulated as per political whims, that even the education being offered
> seems to be just to serve political bosses rather than to ensure that those
> learning from it can actually help in contributing to a better world.
>
> The result is appearance of a disaster, the kinds of which will only be
> visible when disgruntled elements across the society only indulge in
> violence on a highly consistent basis, the likes of which we may never have
> seen before ever in history. And it's time we actually join hands to stop
> this from happening and start on a positive note.
>
> I think on a personal scale Malik jee, it's necessary for you to at least
> ask that Muslim colleague of yours why he behaves like that, and whether he
> feels insecure. I think that trust can be obtained, otherwise we can all
> keep singing only in our dreams:
>
> 'ye dooriyan, in raahon ki dooriyan, nigahon ki dooriyan, humraahon ki
> dooriyan, fanaa ho sabhi dooriyan'
>
> Regards
>
> Rakesh
> _________________________________________
> reader-list: an open discussion list on media and the city.
> Critiques & Collaborations
> To subscribe: send an email to reader-list-request at sarai.net with
> subscribe in the subject header.
> To unsubscribe: https://mail.sarai.net/mailman/listinfo/reader-list
> List archive: &lt;https://mail.sarai.net/pipermail/reader-list/>




-- 
Rajen.