[Reader-list] India on a list of countries which have failed to protect its religious minorities adequately

[Rakesh Iyer]

Dear Kshamendra, Shuddha, Rajen and Murali ji (and rest as well)

If the issue is simply that whether the minorities must be allowed in any
nation to profess, practice and preach their religion and have the right to
construct monuments (subjected to certain restrictions like not destroying
the right of others to do the same etc.), then it must be allowed. And if
Islamic nations don't allow it, then it's wrong and incorrect to do so. And
if anybody says that India should also do the same for its minorities, it
shall also be wrong.

However, we can't control the actions of any other state except for
protesting against their unjust actions. What we can do is control the
actions of our own state (simply meaning the state which we are a citizen
of) through public action/pressure and public discussion. Therefore, even if
Islamic states don't allow minorities the right of worship, it's the duty of
the Indian state not to deprive the minorities of the same if they
(minorities) exist in its territory. It's against human rights, and also the
Constitution of India.

Therefore, how does it matter whether a nation is Islamic or not is
something I don't understand.

And to portray the Muslims of the world as a homogeneous entity (as those
believing in the Ummah or the Al-Qaeda) or even painting them in the same
color, is something I have strong reservations about because each individual
has some particular thoughts or beliefs of his/her own, which are influenced
by society, but which can be different from it as well. All of them can't be
regarded to speak in one single voice. Therefore, it's wrong to portray the
actions of some of the states (which even their citizens may not support
necessarily) as the true picture of Islam.

In Afghanistan, people watched Amitabh Bachchan and Shahrukh Khan movies
through piracy before the Taliban ruined it all. And this returned to a
certain extent once the Taliban was out of power. In Pakistan, people
watched saas-bahu serials like in our Indian cities, when relayed through
Indian TV channels (useless anyways, but shows similar interests of women on
either side of the border). People protested when their relaying was banned
by the govt. there. And recently, there were protests on the issue of
political freedom in Iran (to have a govt elected by fair means), another
Islamic country where election results were supposedly manipulated, and
which have been discussed in this forum as well.

Therefore, to assume that people of those nations don't want freedom or
dont' require it, is to suffer from collective amnesia, or be out of touch
with reality. (Even if they don't want it, they deserve it, if nothing else,
then just for rejecting the choice to have choices). Just because the elites
form policies and the clergy supports it doesn't mean that the policy has
the support of all the people whom the elites rule over. Believing so would
mean that Babur's and Aurangzeb's policies of war and destruction of temples
(and even discrimination) had whole-hearted support from both Muslims and
Hindus living in the territories of the Mughal Empire. And that, all would
accept, is a foolish thing to believe.

Regards

Rakesh