Indian Muslims are also Hindus…

Before we get into this provocative debate, we need to define a Hindu and Hinduism. When some one in America asked me if I was a Hindu, my answer was “Since I am definitely not a Muslim or a Christian, I must be a Hindu”. This was a question asked by a black girl in my class in 1982. She was in the process of converting to Islam. My detailed answer to her question made her rethink her decision but I did not pursue the topic and Ann Vivian converted to Islam within a few months. Akbar defined Hinduism as a nationality whereas Gandhi described it as a philosophy. It was Pandit Nehru who inadvertently divided the Indian Civilization into Hindu-Muslim-Sikh and Christian religions. Nobody since has challenged his misguided interpretation!

What is Hinduism? Is it a nationality, a philosophy or a religion? If Hinduism is a religion then what exactly is their faith? Who do they pray to, what is acceptable and what is prohibited in Hinduism? Who sets the rule for Hindus? Brahma, Vishnu and Mahesh are considered to be the ‘Trimurti’ of Hinduism but do people in South identify with them the way people in North do? Arya Samajis do not pray to any deity instead they perform ‘Havans’. Does it mean they are not Hindus? People in West Bengal worship Durga and Kali and many other deities, are they not the real Hindus? Guru Nanak was a Hindu Khatri, do his followers stop being Hindus? Sindhis pray to ‘Jhulelal’, are they not Hindu enough? Marathis pray to Ganapati and Shiva is the god for people in Kashmir, Himachal and Uttarakhand. Who is a genuine Hindu and why?

Sixty percent of the population in India does not really pray regularly. Muslims by and large do perform Namaz every day but celebrate all Hindu festivals with equal aplomb. They are gainfully employed during the so called Hindu ceremonies. Christians do not attend church every day but again celebrate all Indian celebrations, Diwali as well as Christmas. Sikhs are even less distinguishable. It is only the die-hard zealots who are eager to separate each other and make hateful and hurtful comments. What Varun Gandhi said was deplorable so were the comments from Syed Ali Geelani or Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale. Anybody making any excuses for anyone of these bigots is neither a Hindu nor an Indian. We the people need to purge all of them now!

What is a ‘Hindu Nationalist Party’?

Most of the ‘Western World’ and the pseudo secularists in India call the BJP (Bhartiya Janata Party) a ‘Hindu Nationalist Party’. With the same yard-stick, the Republican Party in America should be called “White Christian Nationalist Party”. Just think about it! If Republican Party has a couple of ‘Black Faces’ in the party, the BJP has a couple of ‘Muslim Faces’. The GOP (Grand Old Party), as the Republican Party is called, is predominantly Christian, the BJP is predominantly Hindu. Both the GOP and the BJP are highly nationalistic since both parties focus on defense and ‘National Security’. Then why this double standard? The answer is simple. The Bhartiya Janata Party is openly jingoistic while the GOP is covertly racist. When it comes to governance, both have been reasonably moderate but strong on ‘National Defense’. The problem is that ‘American National Defense’ is a legitimate national concern but when it comes to ‘Indian National Defense’, it is considered fundamentalism.

The BJP has never governed India on it’s own because it was always considered a regional party. The GOP on the other hand has ruled for more than 100 years, coming to power again and again. Once a nationalistic party rules for an extended period of time, it tends to become even more moderate. The compulsions of governance make a party less ideological and more pragmatic. BJP during it’s tenure from October 13, 1999 to May 22, 2004 was reasonably moderate and responsible. The only significant aberration was the 2002 communal riots in Gujarat that were shameful to say the least. Not to forget that they were instigated by the minority community. The Congress Party that claims to be the moral conscience of the country was in charge at the time of 1984 Hindu-Sikh riots. Talk of Congress hypocrisy or Western connivance! It was the British Empire in India that introduced communal riots to divide and rule and American complicity with Pakistan to keep the pot boiling.