Shekhawat's Sinister Soliloquy

It is hard to believe this man has been the Vice-President of India and is the darling of a huge segment of the NRI population in the U.S. How does a political party in a pluralistic society like India support the candidacy of a person for Presidency with such a dubious background? While Indians live and earn globally and enjoy freedom and justice especially in the developed world, why these NRIs are cozying upto him? The same people who cry foul at the slightest discrimination at their adopted lands, care very little about the gross injustices perpetrated against minorities, Dalits and women back in their homeland?
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Shekhawat's Sinister Soliloquy

Kavita Srivastava in Jaipur profiles Hindutva veteran Bhairon SinghShekhawat and discovers that he might pose to be secular and clean,but come what may, a leopard does not change his spotsHe might be adored by the Hindutva forces, but for large sections ofprogressive and liberal forces in largely feudal Rajasthan, BhaironSingh Shekhawat, with his ardent RSS and BJP lineage, was an anti-democratic, anti-poor, anti-women, anti-minorities and anti-Dalitchief minister. It comes as no surprise in the manner in which heand his crafty colleagues in the Sangh Parivar have crafted thecampaign of demonising UPA presidential candidate Pratibha Patil,while painting himself as a `secular' saint and a man of highintegrity and impeccable honesty.Bhairon Singh was chief minister in Rajasthan thrice since the1970s. Between 1977-80 after Emergency, during 1990-92, in thebackdrop of the build-up to the demolition of the Babri Masjid inAyodhya, and after the BJP came back to power again (December 1993to December 1998). His career since the mid-1940s, when he was apoliceman in the erstwhile Sikar state, was smeared with allegationsof corruption. It is widely known that his allegiance during thefreedom movement was rather dubious, and even later, in the `land tothe tiller' movement, he aligned with the jagirs. As a politicianand chief minister, he has a proven track record of being anti-Dalit, anti-women and anti-minority.Let us begin with one of his worst atrocities committed during theend of his tenure as chief minister in 1998, which consisted ofrepeated misuse of state power and violation of civil liberties.Anti-women and civil liberties: More than eight cases were filedagainst Alice Garg, her daughters, her son-in-law and her fellowworkers -- a total of 23 people -- in 1998 in the aftermath of thestruggle led by women's groups on the question of violence againstwomen. The campaign led by these groups, along with some otherfactors, had already resulted in the political debacle of the BJP inthe parliamentary elections. Therefore, it had become imperative todestroy the morale of the campaign. Hence Alice Garg, who was one ofthe core members of the campaign, was made a target and all kinds ofcases including misappropriation of funds and collusion in `rape' ofworkers of the Bal Rashmi Society (that seemed to have taken placefive/six years ago) were filed against her. So heavy was the hand ofthe State on Alice that they effectively destroyed her years ofdedicated work as a social worker for the last 30 years in Jaipur.Her organisation, the Bal Rashmi Society, and her self respect andconfidence, was systematically run down.According to one senior police officer who finally looked into thesecases after the Congress government took over, the art of makingfalse cases should perhaps be learnt from Bhairon Singh who in histenure as a sub inspector in the late 1940s for the Sikar state wasallegedly known for harassing his opponents by using a web of falsecases.Bhairon Singh's stand against social activist Bhanwari Devi, whenshe raised the issue of her gang-rape, is well known in Rajasthan.Bhanwari Devi was raped and brutally assaulted because she, asa `saathin', campaigned against child marriage. Instead ofsupporting someone who had broken the typically stereotyped `femalesilence' on rape, he, instead, reportedly called her one day andsaid that he had enough `police acumen' to distinguish an honestperson from a liar and that she was basically lying. He alsoapparently said that he knew how truth can be converted into liesand lies into truth.With such prejudiced presumption of the highest authority of thegovernment, how could the police machinery ever have investigatedanything in the matter? It was thus a long battle of getting thecase transferred to the CBI that led to the case leading to achargesheet. All through the case, the local police never supportedBhanwari when she was ostracised and harassed in the village by thedominant community. And finally, after the acquittal of the accusedin 1995 November, Bhairon Singh allowed the infamous anti-BhanwariDevi rally in Jaipur by BJP MLAs with public slogans and speechesabusing Bhanwari; she was openly called a prostitute and it was alsoannounced that she should be tied to a stake and burnt alive. Whensenior citizens of Rajasthan and women's groups met the chiefminister and appealed to him that he should book the people whopublicly spoke like this, his answer was categorical: this is ademocracy and everybody has the right to speak the way they wished.From May 1996 to 1998, when women's groups campaigned hard to exposecases of atrocities against women in the state, the response of thechief minister was always either so ambiguous or dubious thatfinally it became a kind of complicity with the accused. Whether itwas the hostel rape case or rape by a certain Jain muni in Bhinmal,the responses seemed identical. In the latter case, the chiefminister suspended the superintendent of police who recommended thearrest of the Jain muni; in the hostel rape case, had it not beenfor public pressure, none of the accused would have been arrested.The entire campaign showed that incidents of rape had increased morethan seven times since 1990 in Rajasthan. Instead of responding tothe issue of women's security or the setting up of a women'scommission or a human rights commission, Bhairon Singh set upthe `first commission' for the in the country.Obviously, women, in his scheme of things, had a status well belowthat of cows.Anti-poor, anti-transparency, anti-democracy: The poor in the statehad to continuously struggle for issues like wages, jobs andretrenchment. However, what was significant was that when the poorfrom central Rajasthan under the leadership of the Mazdoor KisanSangharsh Samiti (MKSS) raised the issue of transparency and theright to information with regard to bills, vouchers and musterrolls, Bhairon Singh termed them as secret documents. He said thatthey just can't be made available. The history of long dharnas andsit-ins in Beawar, Jaipur and other district headquarters did notbother him one bit. People sat for more than 50 days in Jaipur and40 days in Beawar, but people's voices did not matter to him. Evenafter making announcements in the Vidhan Sabha that he would `give'the right to information, he refused to comply by it. He even wentto the extent of terming secret the report of the committee that wasset on this issue of making transparent bills and vouchers.It is clear that he seemed reluctant to crack down on themisappropriation of public funds that were being used as electionfunds by local netas; besides, he wanted to protect the bureaucracycome what may, despite the apparent insinuations.Anti-Muslim and anti-Christian: He was the leader of the BJP inRajasthan in 1989. He rode the crest of victory on brazenly rightwing politics. He led the entire `shila pujan' campaign in thestate. After all, Rajasthan sent the largest number of shilas toAyodhya. The `shila pujan' campaign resulted in the first ever riotin Jaipur in 1989. The particular brand of xenophobic politics ofthe BJP under the RSS/VHP and his leadership had also resulted inthe Kota riots in 1989 resulting in 14 people's deaths and scores ofinjury. Bhairon Singh shelved the investigation file of the Kotariots for nine years. It was only after the Congress came to powerthat the chargesheets were filed.When LK Advani came to Jaipur during his infamous `rath yatra' in1990, it was Bhairon Singh who introduced him in the public meetingsthat took place in Jaipur and elsewhere. The Jaipur public meetinghad him flex his muscles saying that there was nostopping `Advaniji'. Bhairon Singh challenged the chief minister ofUP that he dare stop the yatra, or else there would be major unrestin the country. This was bad news in any case, even while the rathyatra led to major incidents of communal violence across thecountry, especially after the Babri Masjid demolition.Jaipur had one of its worst riots in 1990 when more than 56 peopledied in the city and there was massive exodus of Muslims back intothe walled city in Muslim ghettos. Bhairon Singh announced acommission which indicted the government but the report was nevermade public. Post Babri masjid demolition in December 1992, Jaipur,other cities like Beawar, witnessed terrible violence.While the BJP government was removed after the demolition in 1992,it came back to power in December 1993. Soon after, the misuse ofTADA became transparently partisan and brazen against the Muslims:all the 250 TADA detainees happened to be Muslims, along with oneSikh.In 1997, Bhairon Singh let the Jaipur police fire at protestingMuslims on the Kabristan issue. Six Muslims were killed and 40injured. He also supported his home minister for his statement thatthe Muslims deserved it.In south Rajasthan in Banswara, Bhairon Singh ignored the continuousprotests by Christians against relentless atrocities of the BanvasiKalyan Parishad and other Sangh Parivar outfits. It was the NationalHuman Rights Commission who took cognisance of more than 25 cases ofattacks on the Christians and sent a notice to the government ofRajasthan.The worst killings of Dalits happened in Kumher, Bharatpur in 1992June. More than 35 Dalits were killed although the BJP governmentmaintained that the death-count was only 17. This was the worst-evercarnage of Dalits of Rajasthan in independent India.Post Godhra killings and Gujarat Genocide: Bhairon Singh was theleader of opposition in Rajasthan when the Godhra killings happened,followed by state-sponsored genocide organised by the Sangh Parivarunder the leadership of Chief Minister Narendra Modi. In a publicmeeting in Gangapur, Karauli district, in April 2002, after thekilling of three people in Rajasthant, Bhairon Singh madeprovocative speeches. Will Rajasthan also repeat Gujarat? That wasthe phobia which stalked the state at that time.The message of the story is simple: come what may, a leopard doesnot change his spots: a Sangh Parivar `Sanghi' is a communalfundamentalist in essence and reality. Despite the secular package-deal, which is a pack of lies.The writer is General Secreatary, PUCL, Rajasthan. The viewsexpressed here are her own

Stop Sethusamudram, abandon unscientific alignment: BJP

DMK Gov't says this project involves dredging a 167-km canal across the Palk Strait between India and Sri Lanka to allow ships travelling between eastern and western coasts of India a direct passage through Indian waters rather than circumnavigating Sri Lanka. It is a sad commentary that political parties are masquerading as fundamentalist organizations to advance religious agendas! On one hand, we claim to be the advanced IT super power and the next minute, we regress into being the advocates of ideas that stifle developments in mythical proportions!
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Stop Sethusamudram, abandon unscientific alignment: BJP

Considering the gravity of the situation and importance of the Ram Sethu for crores of people who believed the bridge to have been constructed at the command of Shri Ram, the BJP appointed a fact-finding committee with Dr. M.M. Joshi, Shri Yashwant Sinha, Shri Vedprakash Goyal, Shri Shreegopal Vyas, Shri Su Thirunavukkarasar, all MPs and Shri La Ganeshan president Tamil Nadu state BJP.

Alternative alignment for having a land-based canal should be selected. A committee consisting of renowned experts belonging to disciplines like underwater archaeology, environment and climatology, earth scientists, atomic scientists along with representatives of Navy and other geostrategic experts be formed for this purpose. Representatives of Acharya Sabha and other religious leaders should also be associated with it so that neither the Ram Sethu nor any other religious shrine is destroyed.
The BJP National Executive, at its two-day meeting, took up the Sethusamudram issue on a priority basis immediately after party president Shri Rajnath Singh delivered his address.

Shri Kalyan Raman, an expert, gave a presentation on this issue.

The project will adversely affect ecological balance, wash away thorium and titanium deposits, make Indian coasts more vulnerable to tsunami, destroy a piece of heritage and hurt religious sentiments of millions of Hindus, Muslims and Christians, the BJP said.

The project involves dredging a 167-km canal across the Palk Strait between India and Sri Lanka to allow ships travelling between eastern and western coasts of India a direct passage through Indian waters rather than circumnavigating Sri Lanka.

BJP and Hindu groups say the project will damage Ram Sethu, which is mentioned in the Ramayana. The following is the full text of the resolution adopted by the BJP National Executive.

Save Ram Sethu, save heritage, save India
The Bharatiya Janata Party expresses its grave concern over the total insensitivity and obduracy on the part of the UPA government and in particular of the Shipping and Transport Minister Shri T.R. Balu in unabashedly proceeding with the implementation of the controversial alignment of the Sethu Samudram Canal Project (SSCP) by completely ignoring the opinions of internationally recognised experts, rejecting the appeals from all sections of the society including signatures by 3.6 million people submitted to the President of India demanding a change in the present alignment of the SSCP, which is bound to destroy the bridge which is revered by millions of people—Hindus, Muslims and Christians—as Sethu Mandir, Rama Sethu, Adi Sethu, Adam’s Bridge etc., and is considered the most ancient heritage of our country. Delegations of Acharya Sabha and representatives of Shankaracharyas had waited upon the President and the Prime Minister to apprise them of the strong resentment in the people because they apprehended imminent destruction of the Sethu if the proposed alignment was implemented. The acharyas impressed upon both of them the religious and cultural importance of Ram Sethu and the deep sentiments of the people associated with the Sethu. The Prime Minister asked them to meet the Shipping Minister.

The Acharya Sabha delegation met Shri Balu, and categorically told him that the opposition was not to the Project but to the alignment and for selecting it arbitrarily which has hurt the sentiments of the people. They also requested to suspend the dredging and to explore the possibility of selecting an alternative alignment which was feasible and would also save the Sethu. During the talks Shri Balu invited the acharyas to visit the site before further discussions. Despite repeated requests from the Acharya Sabha the Minister has been avoiding their visit to the site on one pretext or the other. Obviously he and the government have something to hide. What is even more reprehensible is his statement that those who are opposing the Project are anti-national. In fact the Minister, through his various statements, was trying to misguide the public by denying even the existence of a Sethu constructed between India and Sri Lanka in the hoary past. The government has also turned a blind eye to the representations of thousands of fishermen who will lose their only source of livelihood.

In the month of March 2007 reports were received about widespread opposition, particularly in the districts of Madurai and Ramnathpuram and the Rameshwaram region, to the dredging which was about to hit the Sethu.

Considering the gravity of the situation and importance of the Ram Sethu for crores of people who believed the bridge to have been constructed at the command of Shri Ram, the BJP appointed a fact finding committee with Dr. M.M. Joshi, Shri Yashwant Sinha, Shri Vedprakash Goyal, Shri Shreegopal Vyas, Shri Su Thirunavukkarasar, all MPs and Shri La Ganeshan, president Tamil Nadu state BJP. The committee visited Chennai, Ramnathpuram, Rameshwaram region and Dhanushkodi between March 19 and 22. The committee also visited the project office at Rameshwaram and had a discussion with the officers. The committee has during and subsequent to its visit interacted with scholars, journalists, scientists, retired navy officers, fishermen, lawyers, local leaders, activists working for environmental concerns, and also religious leaders. Following are the facts that emerged:

Ram Sethu is a fact, not a myth
In order to confuse the public mind it was being propagated that there was no archaeological or historic existence of the Rama Sethu or Adam’s Bridge in Rameshwaram. Apart from what has been described in the two epics—Ramayan and Mahabharat—and other Indian texts the existence of Rama Sethu has been confirmed by several foreign travellers including the Venetian traveller Marco Polo (1254-1324), cartographers, the images released by NASA and ISRO, and the maps prepared in 1747, 1788 and 1804. Also the Manual of the Administration of Madras Presidency mentions both Adam’s Bridge and Ram Sethu. It also says that the Sethu was used for pedestrian traffic between India and Sri Lanka until 1480.

The sculptures in Prambanan Temple (9th century) in Indonesia depict the story of the construction of the Sethu.

Experts like Shri S. Badrinarayan former Director of Geological Survey of India and other scientists including those in the Earth Science Department of Government of India have opined that the Sethu is not a natural formation. All these facts fully support the continuing existence of world’s most ancient man-made bridge Ram Sethu.

Why people oppose the present alignment
The SSCP was first conceived during 1860 to 1922 with a view to avoiding circumnavigation around Sri Lanka in order to reduce time, distance and cost for the ships passing from the west to east coast and vice versa. Nine proposals were formulated for cutting a channel across the narrow strip of land mostly through the Rameshwaram island. The project was later abandoned.

In the post-Independence era the project was again revived and several committees were formed.

The 1956 committee headed by Shri A.R. Mudaliar categorically stated that the Adam’s Bridge (Ram Sethu) site (that is the present alignment) was unsuitable and also the idea of cutting a passage in the sea through the Adam’s Bridge should be abandoned.

The Rameshwaram Ship Canal Scheme (now SSCP) was investigated three times in the last sixty years and at all these occasions the canal was sought to be sited on the island. All these committees recommended to have a land based canal like Suez or Panama.

The new channel alignment on which Shri Balu and the Government of India are insisting to implement was never considered by any of the committees since 1860 when Commander Taylor proposed a canal.

It has also been pointed out by experts that the Ram Sethu divides the turbulent Bay of Bengal from the calm and tranquil waters of Gulf of Mannar. Due to this condition a very rare species of corals and other rare sea organisms grew in the Gulf of Mannar. The fishermen have been crying for this very reason that rare species of fish would become extinct which will render several thousand families jobless.

Scientists are worried over the irretrievable loss of flora and fauna. The consequences of cutting the Sethu will be calamitous for over 3,600 exotic varieties of marine and plant life which will become extinct and may also affect the delicate ecosystem in the area. If the habitat of the fish is affected obviously then hundreds of fishing villages along the coast would face extinction.

Climatologists have opined that cutting the Sethu will seriously affect the monsoon conditions and thereby the rainfall and its distribution resulting in irreversible climate changes in the mainland.

The NEERI report which is being cited by Shri Balu as the basis of the present alignment was submitted before the occurrence of tsunami in December 2004. No post-tsunami evaluation have been conducted in the region and no account has been taken of the radical changes in the bathymetry produced by tsunami in the sea and what would be the effect of a future tsunami.

The PMO itself raised some serious queries on March 8, 2005 which were responded by the Chairman, Tuticoran Port Trust, on June 30, 2005 without any reference to NEERI of Nagpur and NIOT of Chennai. It is unimaginable that serious queries can be summarily disposed like a telegraphic reply within such a short time, specially when Prof. Tad S. Murthy, the world-renowned tsunami expert, had raised serious objections. Prof. Murthy had pointed out that in case of a future tsunami the present alignment is likely to create a devastating impact on southern Kerala.

This raises serious concerns on the absence of due diligence and utter disregard for the concerns expressed about the destruction of Kerala. What is even more strange is that the PMO failed in applying its mind to get the re-evaluation of the Project done by experts, instead it accepted blindly the casual reply by the Chairman, Tuticoran Port trust on June 30 and the Prime Minister and Smt Sonia Gandhi hastily inaugurated the Project on July 2.

Scientists also point out to the huge deposit of underwater minerals in the area adjoining the Ram Sethu. A CSIR team studying placer deposits in the area, found that an estimated 40 million tonnes of titanium alone have been deposited in the entire stretch of 500-km coastline. Tsunami of December 2004 has changed the entire bathymetry of the area and hence the distribution of underwater minerals.

The effect of cutting a channel across the Sethu on the sands containing black thorium of Kerala deposited close to Ram Sethu has not been taken into consideration as also the loss of radioactive thorium due to the disastrous impact of future tsunami of Kerala coasts has also not been evaluated.

The security aspects related to the SSCP have not been taken into consideration. Reports are that Navy has not been consulted at any stage about the Project. The channel as it is designed is not meant for heavy

vessels. At present the channel will be most favourable for vessels in the range of 20,000 to 30,000 DWT. Further, in a water-based channel piloting is essential. One wonders whether any vessel would prefer to use the channel by paying heavy piloting charges and suffering long delays due to shortage of pilots as compared to the time loss in circumnavigating around Sri Lanka? Perhaps the channel would serve empty vessels and/or small ships which will render the service economically unviable.

What is agitating the minds of the people is that when several alternative alignments that do not destroy the Sethu are available why was an alignment arbitrarily decided which cuts across the Ram Sethu ignoring all expert opinions and that too without consulting the Navy for the geostrategic maritime implications? It has also been reported that Prof. Tad S. Murthy was puzzled when he received a fax message with a date line of February 2005 in the month of May with a request to give his reply within 24 hours. This is yet another example of how perfunctory approach was adopted by the Tuticorin Port Trust Chairperson in dealing with the service enquiries regarding the SSCP.

There has been a serious breach in foreign policy, by the Indian government in not reiterating the rights of India in historic waters of Gulf of Mannar. These rights have been consistently held by all governments so far. But the US government does not recognise this claim. And the Government of India has miserably failed quietly acquiescing with the US Navy operational directives.

It may be recalled that the Tuticorin Port Trust Chairperson replied to the queries of the PMO on June 30 and note the date (23.06.05) of US Navy operational directives refusing to recognise Indian claim on historic waters.

The new alignment is dangerously close to the international waters boundary between India and Sri Lanka and it does not facilitate free coastguard movements from both left and right banks of the channel. Many fishermen have suffered because of dredging operations the catches have been dwindling and they are forced to scout in the areas close to the median line sometimes even in the Sri Lankan waters. Over the past two months or so many fishermen have been killed either by Sri Lankan Navy or by LTTE. If the alignment is not changed the situation might further aggravate.

Justice Krishna Iyer in a strongly worded letter to the Prime Minister had appealed to stop building any bridge or other construction, an action hostile to the nation and its swaraj. He also opined that our nation will be weaker and may suffer new dangers as this project would be detrimental to India’s territorial interests.

Padma Bhushan Justice K.T. Thomas, former Justice of the Supreme Court, has categorically stated that in projects like this (SSCP) decisions are to be based not only on a study of geological implications, the religious sentiments of the people are also to be taken into account. In his opinion the Ram Sethu must not be broken.

During the debate on this issue in the Rajya Sabha, Members cutting across their political affiliation supported the plea for preserving Ram Sethu as it was a unique heritage and a matter of pride for us.

After the visit of the committee a letter was written to the Prime Minister stating that, while the BJP was not opposed to the SSCP it was certainly and seriously concerned with the preservation of this unique and rich cultural heritage of our country which should be declared world heritage.

It is indeed shocking that even after this mounting opposition from all quarters, the UPA government has remained completely insensitive to this popular demand and has adopted a stony silence on this issue. Till today there has been no response from the Prime Minister on the letter sent in the month of March. In the opinion of the BJP the UPA government has shown utter disregard not only to the sentiments of crores of Hindus but also of all communities. It is now abundantly clear that the UPA government led and guided by Smt Sonia Gandhi has scant respect for the ancient heritage of India.

In the opinion of the BJP, the present alignment of the SSCP should be abandoned and work on the site should be stopped forthwith. The Party also demands that:
1. A re-evaluation of the Project should be done taking into consideration the effect of post-tsunami changes in the bathymetry.
2. The effect of any future tsunami on south Kerala and other parts should be carefully investigated. Its effect on the placer deposits and the implications of the natural radioactivity should be thoroughly examined.
3. Effects on the delicate ecosystem and the monsoon formation in the mainland be systematically studied. Serious efforts should be made to preserve the exotic marine life and plants.
4. Navy should be consulted for the geostrategic impact of the SSCP.
5. Since Ram Sethu is an ancient formation and is close to the thorium sands of Kerala coastline, the geological significance of the entire region should be studied with particular reference to India’s nuclear programme initiatives.
6. A large number of fishermen and their families have suffered due to the adverse effect of dredging, they should be duly compensated.
7. Alternative alignment for having a land-based canal should be selected. A committee consisting of renowned experts belonging to disciplines like underwater archaeology, environment and climatology, earth scientists, atomic scientists along with representatives of Navy and other geostrategic experts be formed for this purpose. Representatives of Acharya Sabha and other religious leaders should also be associated with it so that neither the Ram Sethu nor any other religious shrine is destroyed.
8. UPA government should assert its right of historical waters in this region.
9. The government should make serious efforts for Ram Sethu being declared the world heritage since this is the world’s oldest man-made bridge. Sentiments of the people must be respected.
The BJP appeals to the countrymen belonging to all communities to unite and work for preserving India’s heritage and pride.
`Sethusamudram opponents against South`s development`
Chennai, May 04: Coming down heavily on "religious fundamentalists" opposing the Sethusamudram Project under the pretext of saving Rama`s bridge, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M Karunanidhi Friday appealed to them not to obstruct a scheme that would lead to prosperity.
Replying to points raised by Left party members, Karunanidhi said even AIADMK chief Jayalalithaa, now threatening to move court over the issue, had stated in her 2001 party manifesto that "The prime objective of the project was to remove the sand mass and rocks obstructing movement of ships at Adam`s Bridge, lying between Rameswaram and Thalaimannar in Sri Lanka and dig a canal by deepening the area".
The manifesto had said the AIADMK would insist on the centre allocating funds required for the project and completing it. Jayalalithaa had claimed full credit for the project when it was announced, he said.
He said opponents of the scheme were "religious fundamentalists" who wanted a situation similar to that after the demolition of the Babri mosque to prevail. A majority of those fundamentalists belong to north India and they do not want south India to prosper, he alleged.
"By making this charge I am not raising the demand for a Dravidian country once again," he added.
The DMK, when it was founded in 1949, had demanded a separate Dravidian Nadu (country) but gave this up after the Chinese aggression in 1962. Instead, it wants more powers for the state.
`No man made structure found in way of Sethusamudram`
Reiterating their claim that no man made structure was found in the way of the Sethusamudram Shipping Canal Project (SSCP), the Tamil Nadu government Friday informed the Assembly that drilling done during the previous NDA regime had also found no such structures.
Minister for Information, Paruthi Ilamvazhuthi, intervened when AIADMK member Srinivasan made a mention of the Ramar Sethu.
"In 2002, when Uma Bharathi was Union Minister for Mines, drilling to a depth of 230 metres was taken up, but no such structure was found," he said, adding that the drilling was done only upto 200 metres under the current project.
Bureau Report
http://www.zeenews.com/articles.asp?aid=369541&sid=REG&ssid=
'Don't derail Sethu project'
NT Bureau
Chennai, May 4:
Chief Minister M Karunanidhi today made an appeal to the political parties which opposed Sethu Samudram Project (SSP) to keep off the issue and help complete the ambitious dream venture.
Replying to a call attention motion brought by CPI (M), CPI and Congress in the State Assembly today, Karunanidhi listed out the benefits of the SSP and said that a few years ago there was even competition among the parties over the issue of quick implementation of the SSP.
The Chief Minister also read out a portion of the AIADMK election manifesto of 2001 and said the party had then supported the SSP but now has made a U turn and says that 'Ramar bridge would be destroyed by the SSP.'
http://newstodaynet.com/04may/ld10.htm
BJP, DMK clash over Sethusamudram project
PTI[ FRIDAY, MAY 04, 2007 01:45:42 PM]
NEW DELHI: The Opposition BJP clashed with the DMK in the Lok Sabha on Friday over the Sethusamudram project issue, forcing adjournment of the House for an hour.
The issue was raised during the Zero Hour by BJP deputy leader V K Malhotra for the second consecutive day.
The BJP has accused the government of attempting to destroy evidence of the existence of ancient 'Ram Setu' (bridge) linking India and Sri Lanka through the Sethusamudram ship channel alignment.
Government holds the view that there is no scientific evidence regarding the existence of any man-made structure in the proposed ship channel alignment.
Vehemently protesting, DMK members contended that the matter was sub-judice.
Observing that the issue was not sub-judice, Speaker Somnath Chatterjee allowed Malhotra to raise it.
Shipping Minister T R Baalu gestured to the DMK members to take their seats and sought permission to make his submission. But Malhotra contended that the Minister could not speak at this stage since the Speaker had called the BJP member.
DMK members were again on their feet objecting to Malhotra's remarks. In the din, the Speaker adjourned the House for an hour.
The Rs 2427 crore Sethusamudram ship channel project envisages dredging of 167 km channel along the Palk Straits, Palk Bay and Adams Bridge to connect Bay of Bengal and Gulf of Mannar between India and Sri Lanka.
http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/News/PoliticsNation/BJP_DMK_clash_over_Sethusamudram_project/articleshow/2003145.cms

Caste system is a curse on India. Despite great efforts by the founding fathers of modern India, vestiges of caste system still remain. It is the hidden apartheid and the repurcussions are quite evident in every facet of the Indian life. About 150 million people are struggling directly under the yoke of this oppression yet, there is reluctance from even officials at the high ecehlon to admit the obvious. At a recent meeting in Geneva under the U.N. auspices, India denied the existence of such a system. If we are to redress it, we need to face upto the facts. Vested interests are determined to perpetrate the caste status-quo through another deceptive method now that is to provide a new banner called 'Hindutva'!
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Amend Bhim Smriti to Annihilate Caste
by Kunal Ghosh
Monday 2 July 2007
On June 9 and 10, 2007, the Rajasthan Brahman Sabha held a meeting at Salasar, and resolved to launch a peaceful agitation to demand job reservation. (The Times of India, Lucknow, June 12, 2007, p. 7) This comes in the immediate aftermath of the violent agitation of the Gujjars, who had demanded a change in their status from OBC (Other Backward Caste) to Scheduled Tribe (ST). The Meenas of Rajasthan, who had been enjoying an ST status hitherto, opposed the Gujjar stir fearing competition in higher education and government jobs. The two groups had squared off and a few lives had been lost. The Gujjars had to withdraw the agitation after several inconclusive meetings with the government.
The Rajasthan Brahman Sabha meeting was attended by Congress MLA Bhanwar Lal Sharma and Forest Minister Laxmi Narayan Dave of the BJP. The meeting attracted Brahmin leaders from other States and political parties, the most notable being former Chhattisgarh Minister Satyanarayan Sharma. It should be noted that the Brahman Sabha’s reservation demand comes in the wake of the recent victory of the Dalit-Brahmin alliance that brought Mayawati to power in Uttar Pradesh and that reservation for any of the upper castes will have an effect of strengthening the caste system. It seems that India’s caste cauldron never ceases to simmer, throws up a kaleidoscopic variety of phenomena and often comes to boil.
Dr Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar, born in an untouchable caste of Maharashtra, suffered humiliations since his childhood in the hands of upper-caste Hindus. His predecessor in social reform and role model, Jotiba Phule, was born in a touchable Shudra caste of the gardener or Mali. Even so he was denied the right to education by the upper castes of Pune and his father had to take him to Ahmadnagar to be taught by Christian missionaries. Phule remained loyal to Hinduism and tried to reform the Hindu society. He wrote a book called Gulamgiri and urged the Shudras to acquire self-respect and education. Ambedkar did the same for the untouchables and also wrote many books, famous among them being Who Are The Untouchables and Who Are The Shudras. In school he was barred from learning the Sanskrit language. He studied Law and Economics, taught himself Sanskrit and read all the Smritis, the scriptures of law. In his famous paper, ‘Castes in India, Their Mechanism, Genesis and Development’, he says that caste is “an enclosed class and that it existed even before Manu”. Manu merely codified the caste rules in his Smriti. He did not create the caste system, the ancient Hindu society did. The cruelest of all the rules is that that denies education to the Shudra and preserves it only for the three upper castes, who are dwija, that is, twice born.

AMBEDKAR worked tirelessly to arouse his caste brethren and emancipate them socially and economically. Later he became the Chairman of the Constituent Assembly and incorporated reservation for the untouchables in higher education, jobs and parliamentary seats in the Indian Constitution. He also piloted the Hindu Code Bill and while doing so was instrumental in injecting modernity in Hindu laws. H. V. Kamath, himself a member of the Constituent Assembly and a Brahmin, said:
….my honorable friend Dr Ambedkar said the other day that there are perhaps 137 Smritis…. And now we have got the 138th Smriti….. I hope Dr. Ambedkar will pardon me if I refer to this (Hindu code bill) as the Bhim Smriti. (Ref: Constituent Assembly Debates, Vol. II, Part II, dated February 24, 1949)
Ambedkar observes that his people, the untouchables, need rituals and priests, but as long as they employ Brahmin priests they would be held in a spell and cannot assert equality and self-respect; they need priests of their own castes. (This particular observation of his happens to be true for the touchable Shudras and even for the non-Brahmin upper castes like Kshatriyas and Vaishyas, albeit in a more subdued fashion, but they were not his concern.) Hence he converts himself and his followers to Buddhism. Ambedkar would demolish the caste system if he could and he wrote an essay called ‘Annihilation of Caste’. Mahatma Gandhi asked him for a message for the first issue of his journal, Harijan. Ambedkar’s message was: The outcaste is a by-product of the caste system. There will be outcastes as long as there are castes. Nothing can emancipate the outcaste except the destruction of the caste system. Nothing can help to save Hindus and ensure their survival in the coming struggle except the purging of the Hindu faith of this odious and vicious dogma. (Ref: Harijan, dated February 11, 1933)
Swami Vivekananda spoke to all sections of the Hindu society but his focus was on moving the upper strata to feel for the poor and down-trodden castes, and then to act in a spirit of service. He says (Ref: Complete Works, Vol. 3, pp. 297-298):
To the Braahmanas I appeal that they must work hard to raise the Indian people by teaching them what they know…It was not his (the Brahmin’s ) fault that he reached ahead of other castes…. But it is one thing to gain advantage and another thing to preserve it for evil use….So this accumulated culture of ages for which the Braahmana is the trustee, he must now give to the people at large….It was because he did not….for a thousand years we have been trodden under the heels of everyone who chose to come to India…. There is an old superstition that if the cobra that bites, sucks out his own poison, the man must survive. Well then, the Braahmana must suck out his own poison.
This is certainly a dose of strong medicine. To the lower castes he tells: The only way to bring about the leveling of caste is to appropriate the culture, the education, which is the strength of the upper castes…..This Braahmana , the man of God, he who has known Brahman, the ideal man, the perfect man, must remain. We must be bold enough to speak of their defects, but at the same time we must give the credit due to them…. (Ref: Complete Works, Vol. 3, pp. 291, 293)
Vivekananda has spoken and written much on the caste system. Any quotation may seem one-sided and lifted out of context. To get the complete flavour of such a great man’s outlook one would have to go to the Complete Works and no less. His greatest contribution is in pointing out a contradiction between the Advaita Vedanta philosophy and the caste system. He asks: Who reduced the Bhangis and the Pariahs to the present degraded conditions? Heartlessness in our behaviour and at the same time preaching wonderful Advaitism (oneness of all)—is it not adding indult to injury? (Ref: Complete Works, Vol. 6, pp. 115)
He gave the holy thread to some of his Shudra followers in one ceremony. This of course was a symbolic act. He gave the right to priesthood to all castes within the bounds of the monastic order and its educational institutions. He wrote in favour of inter-caste marriage. He forbid the monks of the Ramakrishna Order to take part in social reform, but made one exception. He left discreet instructions that they should encourage inter-caste marriage but in a most unobtrusive way. He seemed to say, ‘Reform society slowly and gradually to move relentlessly toward a casteless order.’ He predicted that all exclusive privileges (Visheshaadhikaar was his term) would and should vanish one day.

CASTE cannot be annihilated in a few generations. But there must be continuous reform and movement in the right direction. A century has passed since Vivekananda exhorted the upper castes to accept the outcaste and the deprived as their brothers, to serve them as Gods; Daridra Narayana was his term for the poor. The reservations initiated by Ambedkar are now more than a half century old. The saga of reservation has come full circle and now the Brahmins are agitating to demand reservation in jobs. They have forgotten that they still enjoy an exclusive reservation in the ‘Sacred Sector’ of the economy; all the temple jobs are theirs and there are millions of temples in India. All priestly jobs related to the life-cycle ceremonies, of birth, marriage and death, performed in family circles of all castes, are theirs. The Sacred Sector creates an enormous volume of employment exclusively for the Brahmins. Even the army is in its ambit. The army recruits priests of different religions. When it comes to Hindu priests, the Army lists the required qualifications in the advertisement and puts out a carefully worded rider in news dailies—“Persons belonging to traditional families will be given preference.” What they implement is not preference for one caste, the Brahmins, but exclusion of all other castes. This is a violation of the Indian Constitution which prohibits discrimination on the basis of caste, and that too on the taxpayers’ account. According to noted sociologist Dr. M. N. Srinivas, the three main axes of power in the caste system are the ritual, the economic and the political ones and the possession of power in any one sphere usually leads to the acquisition of power in the other two. (Ref: Caste in Modern India and Other Essays, p. 44) Among the Hindus the Brahmins of modern India constitute the only caste that is empowered in all three main axes. Even then they are on the path to seek job reservation. This does not bode well for the Hindu society.
In the light of what has happened with the Indian polity in last 17 years since the Mandal Commission’s recommendations were imp-lemented and the latest round of events in Rajasthan involving Gujjars, Meenas and Brahmins, one is tempted to conclude that the time has come to take fresh steps in the direction of caste annihilation:
Step 1: Apart from being an ‘enclosed class’ , the caste is also an educational institution; A Barhai (carpenter), Lohaar (blacksmith) or a Brahmin boy learns the ancestral craft from his father. But now there are schools for all manners of crafts and skills, mostly run by the government. Many Brahmins attend ITIs (Indian Technical Institutes) to learn how to operate a Lathe machine or do blacksmithy, the traditional preserve of a Lohaar. Many Kshatriyas attend business schools and do well in trade, the traditional preserve of a Bania. Many from the Scheduled Castes attend service academies and become army and police officers, the traditional preserve of a Kshatriya. Now it is time for the government (and also private bodies) to open schools where all peoples, irrespective of caste, can learn the craft of a priest, learn how to recite mantras and perform rites and ceremonies.
Step 2: The defence forces should start recruiting priests who are formally qualified and certified by recognised priest-training schools. All major temples run by government controlled trusts should also do the same. There should be quotas for SCs and OBCs in these priestly jobs. I am tempted to say that there should be quotas for even non-Brahmin upper castes, such as Kshatriyas and Banias.
Step 3: Apart from the Sacred Sector, in all other sectors the government should look for an exit route from the scenario of job reservation in the long term and start scaling down reservation in the short term. The ‘creamy layer’ principle should be applied to all castes and tribes having quotas. It should be recalled that the founding fathers had intended the caste based reservations to stay only for a limited period.
Step 4: The Indian Constitution and the Hindu Code, that is, the Bhim Smriti, as named by Ambedkar’s colleague H.V. Kamath, should be amended to enshrine these principles that would open up the ‘Sacred Sector’ for all castes. Otherwise there would remain a danger that the society might slide back to olden ways. Amending the Bhim Smriti for the purpose of gradual dismantling of the caste system would be the most fitting tribute to Dr Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar.
The author is a Professor, Aerospace Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur.
Sections

A small step towards justice

The decision by St. Stepens to provide a small quota for the the Dalits who are Christians is a step in the right direction. Economic or other backwardness cannot be undone due to their change of heart as regards religion. This lack of recognition was largely due to the fact that it was used as a dis-incentive for people to change religion especially to be a non-Hindu.
D.

St.Stephens' quota is justified ,says NCM head
Mon Jul 2, 2007 11:48 am (PST)

St. Stephen's Quota Is Justified: NCM Head http://newspostindi a.com/report- 5541Saturday 30th of June 2007 National Commission for Minorities (NCM)chairman Syed Hamid Ansari has upheld the decision of India's premier educational institution, St. Stephen's College, to earmark a small percentage of seats for Dalit Christians.'What St. Stephen's did was perfectly legal. Within the 50 percent quota reserved for Christian students in the college they made a separate allocation for Scheduled Caste Christian students,' Ansari, a former diplomat and vice chancellor of Aligarh Muslim University, told IANS in an interview.'Since the government does not recognize the existence of Scheduled Castes among Muslims and Christians, the authorities asked students wanting to avail themselves of this reservation to secure a certificate from their local bishop.'Ansari said the proposal to reserve seats for Scheduled Caste (SC), Scheduled Tribe (ST) and Other Backward Class (OBC) students in minority institutes was reasonable.'It only stands to logic,' he said.The proposal to reserve 10 percent seats for Dalit Christians in the college earlier this month has evoked mixed response from its alumni with some fearing that such radical changes would affect the reputation of the 125-year-old institution.Historian Ramachandra Guha has argued that changes in the reservation of seats needed be made in consultation with the alumni and other stakeholders to ensure the college's intellectual excellence remains unaffected. Chief Information Commissioner Wajahat Habibullah said that admitting Dalits would not hamper the elite image of the college but resorting to mediocrity may affect it. Last year the human resources development ministry had moved a proposal to fix reservation for SC, ST and OBC students in privately owned educational institutions but to exclude the minority-run institutes from its purview. Currently, reservation for SC and ST exists in all government bodies and institutions.However, the process of reservations for various categories in private institutions stands stalled because the Supreme Court has stayed the reservation for OBCs even in government-run institutions. Recently the government decided to disburse scholarships to 20,000 Muslim students all over the country for graduate and post-graduate studies with greater emphasis on engineering and modern medical education. Asked whether there had been any discrepancy while handing out these scholarships, Ansari said the Commission had not heard of any inconsistency yet but would provide relief to any deserving person or group that was denied the benefit under the scheme. Ansari pointed out that the Commission was keeping a close watch on the situation in Gujarat ahead of assembly elections, due in December, and also on the condition of minorities in the state.'The Commission steps into the picture only when a complaint is made and if minorities have genuine grievances,' said the NMC chairman.(Faraz Ahmad can be contacted at faraz.a@ians. in)

UK Hindu Council does not like the article 18 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights

It is quite amazing that UK Hindu Council doesn't like freedom of conscience. If there is anyone who forces others to convert, the laws are already in the books in India to punish them. Why then such a hue and cry on this issue? It is said that over a million Americans other than than the NRIs and their children (estimated to be 2 million according to HAF), follow the tenets or practices of Hindu religion. Shri Ravi Shankar and Mata Amritanandamayi have huge following of devotees in the USA. The amount of money being collected by the Hindu religious leaders is quite substantial. Is freedom of conscience just a one way street?
D.

United Nations Freedom of Religion and Belief Conference:Hindu Council UK responseThe Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Religion and Belief held ameeting of religious leaders on 6 June 2007 at the House of Lords,hosted by Lord Daniel Brennan QC, in order to ascertain thedifficulties faced by the various religions in implementation ofArticle 18 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. This statesthat "every one has the right to freedom of thought, conscience andreligion which included the freedom to change his religion or belief,and freedom, either alone or in community with others and in publicor private, to manifest his religion and belief in teaching,practice, worship or observance."Every religious leader was given 5 minutes to give his response tothe above Article 18 and give details of any legislative hurdlesfaced in its implementation.Suraj Sehgal director of Hindu Council UK gave his response in thefollowing terms:"The Hindu religion has been secular in outlook and practice. It isnot governed by one book but by the four "Vedas" which explain thepurpose of our existence and how to lead a peaceful and happy life;as well as what happens when we die. Hinduism believes in theimmortal soul and looks at every living being as respectable,irrespective of race, colour or religion. Hinduism believes allhumans are born as Hindus until they are baptized or circumcised.Proselytisation: The right to freedom to change religion and tofreely practice it both in teaching and observance has been grosslyabused by aggressive proselytisation through fraud, force anddeception. Article 18 should be amended to ban such conversions andthe government should legislate against it. The predatory religionsseek the destruction of others faiths and cultures, others way oflife, by sending missionaries whose religious freedom is enshrined intheir mission to convert other God loving people into their ownreligious clubs, thereby seeking the destruction of other religions.Everyone has the right to convert through their own heart'spersuation but MISSIONARY CONVERSION activity is a form of violenceon the society it converts as it seeks to destroy their orginal wayof life. History bears witness to it; when will the UN protectreligions like the Hindus, Buddhists, Jains, Sikhs?Political rights: Any human right cannot be safe guarded or practicedwithout legislative force or backing. All religions have beenrepresented in the House of Lords, but the Hindu religion has beenignored. To this effect Hindus have been facing enormous problems inpracticing their religion in this country. This should be rectified.In order to safeguard the minority religious and other rights thereshould proportional representation by reservation of seats in theHouse of Commons for all minorities.Language Equality: The languages of other religions have beenincluded in the British curriculum, but Hindi and Sanskrit - theHindu languages - have been ignored.Blasphemy laws: The blasphemy laws of this country do not includeHinduism which is the third largest religion in the world, with over1 billion practitioners. All attacks on our temples have been eitherignored or very lightly dealt with. We understand that this law isnot enforceable against the Human rights laws but our point is thatHindus do not have adequate protection under any legal instrument forthe safety of their Temples.

Suraj Sehgal
Director for Defence and Security
Hindu Council UK

Hindu Extremists attack Roman Catholic Priest

There is hardly a day go by without seeing another attack on a minority citizen because of his/her faith. These blatant attacks are gaining momentum and the media is largely ignoring them.
D.

Roman Catholic priest attacked in India By James VargheseSpecial to ASSIST News Service KUNDAPURA, UDUPI, INDIA (ANS) --

A group of Hindu Extremists attacked a Roman Catholic priest, Carmelite Fr. Silvester Pereira, of the Carmel Church in the village of Koteshwara, Kundapura, Udupi District of Karnataka State in India on Monday, June 25th. The attackers, who were from an anti-Christian group called Bajrang Dal*, beat him savagely and struck him with blows. The incident took place as Fr. Pereira was in a hospital along with a Hindu covert to Christianity and three others who had brought him there medical treatment. Then the gang shouted slogans and severely beat him ruthlessly. The local extremists had targeted his work and accused him of "forced conversions" by these activities. The priest sustained serious injuries and was undergoing treatment at press time. A case was registered with the local police and they arrested Ramanna Shetty, the leader of Bajrang Dal. Three days after the attack, three more persons were also arrested. They were Ramanna, Nagaraj and prashant Ankalakatti. Ramanna Shetty was later released on bail. Speaking to ANS, the Police Inspector D'souza said, "The reason these Hindu extremists beat the church father was because he had took a sick person along with him for a medical check up to a nearby hospital, and they alleged that the church father was converting him through this activity." Huge crowds gather in Karnataka to protest attack against Fr. Pereira and other Christians One June 27th, huge crowds gathered in Karnataka to protest attack against Fr. Pereira and other Christians. Mgr Stanislaus Fernandes, archbishop of Gandhinagar and secretary general of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of India (CBCI), said later that he was overwhelmed by the solidarity of the population, irrespective of caste or faith. "The state must however act against the culprits who too often get away with it," he said. * Bajrang Dal is an anti-Christian group prevailing in the land of India, mainly in the southern parts of the country. Their goal is to have an organized Hindu society in which all its constituents and institutions function in harmony and co-ordination, just as in the body organs. So in order to fulfill their aims and objectives they are keenly interested to see that their land is protected and people are "not led astray" and they are always on watch on people and forces that try to "divide their" nation. So the main targets are Christians who proclaim the Good News of Jesus Christ to the people so that is why there are attacks on Christians and their evangelists.

Plural India... can we sustain it?

Ever mounting attacks on Christians and other Minoritites across India evoke great concern among those who worry about the future of India as a pluralistic State. There are forces out there who would like to see an end to such a democratic and secular framework. The following article by Harsh Mander takes you inside and gives you a perspective on this campaign of hatred and bitterness.
D.


A Heavy Cross To Bear
Harsh Mander [Editorial Page article , Hindustan Times, New Delhi, 27June 2007]

Gusts of hot winds have scorched India's hills, plains, valleys andforests. These winds are of hatred manufactured systematically against bitterly demonised communities. The campaigns of hate that target the populous Muslim community are better known than those mounted against the tiny Christian minority who peacefully inhabit most corners of this diverse land.The attacks on Christians, unlike in Hindu-Muslim riots, very rarelyinvolve mass clashes between people of Christian and non-Christian faiths. Instead, the intimidation takes mainly three other forms. The first is of violent assaults on Christian priests, rape of nuns of numerous denominations, destruction and desecration of churches and chapels, and burning of Bibles. These have recurred with growing frenzy since 1997-98, when a priest was paraded naked in Dumka, and nuns were raped in Jhabua and Mayurbhan. In the same district, a priest was murdered in 1999. Churches were destroyed in the Dangs in Gujarat in 1998. India's then Home Minister LK Advani admitted in Parliament that there were 400 attacks on Christian priests, nuns and churches between 1998 and 2000.
These attacks have continued unabated in the new century and recently spread to cities. The intensity of these attacks may be gauged by the fact that in the month of May 2007 alone, physical attacks on priests were reported from locations in Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Rajasthan, Kerala, Orissa, Maharashtra, Chhatisgarh, Andhra Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh. There was a common pattern, of armed mobs of Hindutva activists thrashing the priests, often in front of their families, sometimes proudly before the cameras of invited television channels, accusing them of propagating a 'foreign' religion by fraud, insulting the Hindu faith and demanding that they are permanently expelled. The police, on occasion, accompanied the mobs, but rarely restrained or registered complaints against the attackers. Instead, at times, it arrested the priests.
A second form of intimidation is when converts themselves areattacked. A people's tribunal convened by Angana Chatterji and Mihir Desai painstakingly tracks the frightening sequence of such recent attacks for the state of Orissa alone. Their long and chilling litany includes: in 1999, 157 Christian homes were set ablaze in Ranalai village, and three people suffered gunshot wounds; in 2003, seven women converts and a pastor were forcibly tonsured in Kilipal village, and a socio-economic boycott imposed on them; 15 homes were burnt in 2005 in Gandhavati village, and so on.The third strategy for intimidation is of mobilising large masses for're-conversion' ghar wapsi ceremonies, mainly in tribal regions, inwhich thousands of alleged Christian converts are welcomed 'home' to Hinduism. Dilipsingh Judeo, BJP leader (caught receiving bribes in a television sting) who led the campaign with vicious speeches goading violence against converts, claimed in 1999 that by then 1,65,000 persons were reconverted. But all such claims are highly exaggerated, because independent investigations confirm that the majority of those who are bundled for these rallies are not converts to start with. Also most tribal people were not Hindus in the first place, but animists who worship the wind, forests, hills and animals that inhabit their world.The Sangh propaganda is fuelling the attacks on Christians.Theseattacks are justified by the Sangh and its supporters as righteousexpressions of mass popular resistance by an enraged Hindu majority against allegedly anti-national machinations of Christianmissionaries. It is claimed that these missionaries coerce and bribehapless dispossessed tribal people and Dalits with their foreignfunded educational and health services, into the 'foreign' Christianfaith. At its most extravagant, the missionaries are depicted asinstruments of the CIA and the Pope with the mission to evangelise all of India and reduce Hindus to a minority. Sangh propaganda graphically depicts this alleged clash of patriots with traitors in pamphlets, posters and more recently CDs, through emotive images such as of the cross being triumphantly pierced by a trishul or trident and dripping with blood, or comparing the destruction of churches with Ram's final assault on the demon Ravana.These claims find a sympathetic echo among many middle-class people. Arun Shourie reacts with anguish to this sinister ''harvesting of souls'. And former Prime Minister Vajpayee sheds his masterly ambiguity in the wake of stunned international outrage followed the gruesome burning alive with his two small sons, in the interiors of Orissa in 1999, of Australian missionary Graham Staines who served highly- stigmatised leprosy patients. Vajpayee called for a national debate on conversions. Even Congress governments in states like Himachal Pradesh think it fit to bring in anti-conversion legislation.
In this clouded climate, prejudice refuses to be illuminated orchastened by voices of reason. In the first place, as John Dayal,journalist and human rights worker In this clouded climate, prejudice refuses to be illuminated or chastened by voices of reason. In the first place, as John Dayal, journalist and human rights worker, argues in his book 'A Matter of Equity: Freedom of Faith in Secular India', Christianity was not a British colonial import. This is another falsehood propagated by the Sangh. Indian soil was from the start uniquely welcoming of the world's diversity and persecuted, and Christianity struck deep roots in it one millennium before it gathered millions of followers in Europe. Although there is no evidence to confirm the folklore that Apostle Thomas, disciple of Jesus, himself preached the message of the Christian faith on Indian soil, it is historically confirmed that the Indian Christian community had established itself in India's southern peninsular by the 200 AD. Dayal celebrates this as one more contribution to the diversity of this "wondrous and great" land of as many as 4,635 communities, only 3 per cent of which incidentally derive their names from their religious faith.In many districts that I served, missionaries have reached love andhope to the most wretched of the Indian earth, its leprosy patients,orphans, disabled and infirm, rarely with conversions, in ways thatfew others have tried to achieve. But it is also true that missionaryconversions of the past have tended to de-tribalise the proud tribalpeople, just as the Ramakrishna Mission has also done in their wake. There have no doubt also been problems with the missionaries that acted as an adjunct of colonial rule.But Ram Punyani points out that even after nearly 2,000 years since it first came to India and 200 years of British colonial rule, andconstitutional protection in free India of the right to pursue andpropagate one's religious faith, the percentage of Christians wasreported in the 1971 census to be a tiny 2.6 per cent of the Indianpopulation. Their share in the population fell further to 2.44 in1981, and 2.3 percent in 2001. If numerous new souls were indeed being harvested to this faith, the ratios would obviously not have so dropped.The orchestrated battery of assaults over the past decade mounted on Christians is actually calculated to reduce the entire diverse Indian people of Christian faith to fear and subjugation. There have been rich electoral harvests of this hate in all tribal regions of India.The focus of the campaign is now gradually shifting to cities. Thisnew agenda of the Sangh was probably crafted because the objective of breaking the spirit of Muslims, to live in fear in ghettoes, has already been substantially achieved after the Babri demolition and Gujarat massacre. A new minority has now to be domesticated into living in fear. Brick by brick, the secular democracy of this land is being demolished as the dangerous and incendiary politics of hate besiege new frontiers.