Secular character is India’s lifeline and identity; without it India as a sovereign nation will not survive
Omer Asad Shaik | Caravan Daily
THE INSTANTANEOUS protests across India against CAA and NRC have sent shockwaves which hit the very foundations of the ruling BJP and the RSS hard. Notably, this is a people’s movement organised at the mass level, and it has made all the Opposition political parties irrelevant because of their failure to take a clear and unambiguous stand against the new law. Today, protest marches are being staged across the length and breadth of the country though, admittedly, these are mostly limited to urban sprawls. The situation on the ground is such that it may soon gather more steam and turn into a mass uprising against the wrong policies and practices of the BJP government at the Centre.
Progress in India for the last so many decades was due to the hard work Indians put in, and growth for the nation was achieved in-spite of the sway of corrupt leaders in politics. Fact is, the political elite has not contributed to the growth of the nation. Rather, at their hands, the huge potential of India was wasted to a large extent. The poor infrastructure, the worsening law and order situation, the growing crimes against women, the sad plight of the tribals and the Muslim minority and the total indifference of the leaders in power towards changing these scenarios for the better, have all created a grim situation.
During the last six years, the pro-Hindutva BJP has brought the nation to the brink of bankruptcy. It won the election on the promise of good governance and people chose it when they were fed-up with the corrupt Congress. Little did they realised then that the BJP government would turn out to be so inefficient, sectarian and communal in its approaches. It failed to fulfill any of the election promises and instead decided to play the RSS’ favourite game of religious bigotry. The party took whatever mileage it could get from the issues of Ram Mandir, Article 370, Triple Talaq etc, but failed miserably in running the nation in the right direction. It has no interest in improving the life of the common man. On other hand, steps in the past like Demonetization were a cruel joke played on the hapless poor and middle class Indians.
WATERLOO FOR MODI, BJP
The CAA and NRC may turn out to be the waterloo for both Modi and BJP. They are already on the defensive. The national economy is in a shambles, the growth rate is coming down sharply in the past six years, and this has affected the life of one and all. If this does not get corrected soon, the government may become desperate. And so are the people. Massive unemployment, fall in FDI, reduced exports, and the staggering rise in prices of food and essentials have all made life a living hell for most Indians.
HELP FROM MUSLIM NATIONS
Soon, India will find itself struggling to retain the high level of its foreign exchange reserves. If a time comes when the remittances from overseas Indians do not contribute substantially to these reserves, India would find itself unable to pay for its imports. The Middle East provides significantly to boost the reserves scenario for India and yet the cruel joke against Muslims by the BJP government is on, and this is slowly being taken note of by the Muslim world. The OIC has taken a serious note of this, and has called a meeting of its foreign ministers. On the one hand, the BJP is trying to disenfranchise 200 plus million Muslims; and on the other, millions of Indians are enjoying safety and prosperity in the Muslim world. They are living as minorities with full rights in Europe, Australia and America. Has the BJP ever thought of the outcome if Indians are sent back in bulk from other countries?
The only option for the BJP is to roll back the black law CAA and announce cancellation of all its policies which differentiated Indians based on their religion, caste or language. The Indian Constitution is secular and it must stay secular. Under it, all Indians are equal. Indians belonging to all religions have shown their determination to sacrifice everything to uphold the Indian Constitution. Allegations persist that the BJP returned to power largely due to massive frauds in the electronic voting machines, the EVMs, and today it stands fully exposed and left alone. It must realise that there is no way it can win against the will of the people.
I salute and appeal to the Indian youth to continue their protest across India till the BJP concedes defeat and all communal forces are exposed and defeated. The secular character of India is its identity and its lifeline. Without it, India as a sovereign nation will not survive!
Omer Asad Shaik is an independent commentator with interest in faith, history and world politics. He is based in Milwaukee, USA. He can be reached at [email protected]
