Rev. R.P Murry & Fr. Chacko Karinthayil
Chairman & Secretary, Dimapur Christian Forum
The common man in this country is confused. The ruling pray in this country; the Bharathiya Janatha Party, has spared no efforts to convince the nation that their motto is sab ke sat sab ka vikas which may be translated as development with the cooperation of all, or in other words; ‘all things to all people’.
If development is accessible to all and no citizen is excluded for what so ever reason, every Indian should be feeling good, the ecstatic feeling of ‘Acche din’ which is the other motto of the ruling party. Unfortunately, the reality is that, a section of the people are anxious, afraid, confused. They belong to minority communities; ethnic, religious linguistic and cultural. The events, policy decisions that followed the victory of the ruling party makes it amply clear that, all means the majority, development means following the ancient customs of the majority be they linguistic, religious or ethnic.
The manner in which the ruling party uses f the fanatic fringe organizations of Hindu religion, makes an independent observer doubt the sincerity of the BJP leadership in their commitment to honour the constitution of India by which they swore, as well as the values of democracy that they are bound to uphold. The BJP came to power with the active support of these extreme elements of Hinduism, and these elements are demanding their pound of flesh. The cow vigilantism, yoga vigilantism are the expressions of the fanatic elements that propelled the BJP to power. Remember Kaikeayi, one of the wives of Dasratha, who forced him to crown his son in place of Rama, the legal heir....? Epics do not lie! Extremists, be they from religion, politics, moral or cultural affiliation, are a small percentage in the society. Since the good people are in different and inactive, the extremist elements carry the day. They will create slogans, propagate ideology and recruit volunteers to achieve their end. Past glory and present threat to retain the past glory are the driving forces behind their actions. The minorities in India have some reasons to believe the BJP leadership, for there are many an honourable men and women among them. Will this men and women stand up to the machinations of the fanatic elements and provide a credible leadership that will focus on the development of all?
As Christians, we have reasons for our suspicion. Soon after the BJP came to power, the Government of India declared 25th December as ‘Good Governance Day’. Last year the Good Friday was made a working day for Judges to have some deliberations on Judicial reform. This year it was declared as Digital India Day. Is the GOI using such occasions as a sounding board to test the inauguration of Ramrajya? Just like other minority groups we doubt the sincerity of the BJP leadership. All the platitudes and lip service paid to democracy and development I looks could be the just the ‘Hug of Drithrastra!’
Nagaland has many temples; the Hindus have their worship and religious celebrations without harassment from any Christian organizations. Unfortunately, this is not the case in some part of India, where the religious organizations in the name of Hinduism damages Christian places of worship, assault Christians, and frame false charges against them. There is a church and temple sharing the boundary in one of the colonies of Dimapur. The Dimapur Christian Forum requests the individuals and leaders of Hindu faith to share this good news with their counterparts in other parts of India. This might be a small contribution they can to SAB KE SAT AND SAB KA VIKAS.
