It’s almost time for the Parliamentary Election and voters are getting ready to cast their votes. As usual very often political campaigns, rallies, TV debates and press conferences are dominated by negative speeches, comments and casting of aspersions at each other. There’s no or little mention about positive measures or developmental programmes, that they intend to implement if they come to power.
Of late the role of social media too has come into the spotlight. Prophets of doom with perverse minds have been flooding with malicious messages through WhatsApp, Twitter, Facebook and so on, that spread venom and hatred with the aim to divide civil societies and create an atmosphere of fear, insecurity and apprehension in the minds of people. Abusive messages such as “Be careful, if BJP comes to power all minorities will be forced to leave India for good” or yet another one “Be prepared, when Modi comes back to power all the minorities will have to flee India”.
Now the questions before us are: Do such messages have the sanction from the leadership of political parties or is it just a deliberate attempt by some individuals with crazy minds to create fear psychosis? Is the General Election all about such petty and stupid issues? Why should billion voters stand in long queues and cast their precious votes if they are not going to be productive? Is it not time to consign such repugnant, absurd and meaningless issues to flames?
There are still some Indians who have not yet realised that India is a strong democracy with robust secular fabric, strongly protected by our Constitution, which guarantees equality, freedom and safety for every Indian, immaterial to which religion or culture he/she belongs. We’re in the 21st century and people have lots of expectations. Issues like health, education, food, safe drink water, shelter, affordable transport, employment, battle against garbage, pollution and providing modern infrastructure should take top priority. These should be the principal concerns of politicians.
We have enough conflicts and confrontations on our borders and under no circumstances we should create further tensions, conflicts and ill feelings amongst its communities on the basis of religion and culture. This is preposterous and destructive political thinking, which will neither take our country forward nor will it fulfill our ambition to be a potential trillion dollar economy.
It’s very important that no members of minorities should ever be threatened or feel threatened. Just as these people are in minority in India, there are lakhs of Indians among them thousands of Hindus, who have either settled or working in other countries which are either Muslim or Christian dominated. There is no other country that is Hindu dominated. Thus Hindus too are minorities there. Indians migrate because they believe in rule of law of civilised world and have faith in the govts of countries where they live.
Finally every religious community expects to be protected and feel wholly secure and not to be discriminated or threatened on the basis of its religion. Malicious messages are like sharp knives driving wedges into the delicate fabric of India’s Unity.
