Shameful and painful Situation in India

I normally don’t write about politics in my blog. I use social media for that but as the situation in India seems to deteriorate and the issues gain international attention as well, I would like to register my unhappiness and protest, if you will, in this way today.

Recently an incident in India made headlines in big newspapers all over the world. Maybe you have heard it as well. In the Hindu temple of a village, the temple’s priest announced what the son of a leader of India’s ruling party, the BJP, had told him. It was the rumor that a Muslim family of the village had eaten beef. Upon hearing this, a mob was quickly formed which marched to this family’s home and brutally attacked the family’s father and son. Their strikes and blows killed the father and the son was admitted to the hospital with life-threatening injuries. In the aftermath, it turned out that they had not even eaten beef but lamb – but that did not revive the dead husband and father!

It is an outrageous story which was rightly covered internationally but even more appalling are the reactions of other members of the leading party! That son of a BJP leader, due to whose words this all happened, and some others were arrested. The leaders of their party however excuse their behavior, saying these young adults, who were all above eighteen, are innocent children, just kids who got too excited! They don’t want them to be booked for murder!

At the same time however, they openly approve of their actions, saying anybody who eats beef should get this kind of punishment! A member of parliament of our nation’s ruling party said that the cow was our mother and if you killed our mother, you would be killed as well! These people are ready to kill someone due to the consumption of cow meat!

Of course all these politicians are hypocrites! The most expensive restaurants of the country sell beef, in many states, beef is just normal food for the local population and this all is no problem! But they use this sentiment of the normal, religious Hindu for consciously provoking violence so that the country’s population polarizes and they get more votes!

Yes, it is a big plan. Another BJP leader said ‘If there are riots, we will win the election’, shortly before state elections, and in the past, this has proven true! Political leaders provoke violent reactions from different religious groups, mostly Hindus and Moslems, separating and splitting the country in this way. Some people will die in the riots. In the end, they get the Hindu votes, thus a majority. And that’s how those who were accused of rioting some years ago now sit in the assembly! It is an easy strategy to get votes on the name of religion or caste!

To top it all, our Prime Minister keeps his silence. His party shows its main aim the economic development. Even this is just a farce, something that happens only for the rich. They get richer while the common man and the poor one are still in the same situation as before! Worse even, if they are not religious Hindus, they are even in danger. Unfortunately with this right-wing party ruling, extremist and nationalist Hindus are in power and have the strength as well as political support to provoke violence against those who believe something else.

Well-known rationalist, atheist writers have been killed due to the same reasons and religious extremists have a list on which they already have their next target.

It is a sensitive time for our country and that’s how I am writing here today. I told you yesterday how even a little effort helps and many renowned writers of this country had the same thought. They gave back rewards to the government which they had got for their work as a sign of protest. We all have to show that this is not the India that we want to have. This is not the open, multi-cultural, welcoming country which we claim to be!