Secularism is defined as a social system in a society where diverse
elements of population develop a common outlook relegation to
background their specific characteristics of tradition, religion, region and
history. Secularism is based on the principle of rational approach to social
and national problems of society. The basic principle of secularism,
nationalism, as opposed to obscurantism, of self-reliant socialist
development of Indian society, was first introduced in India Jawaharlal
Nehru in the post-independence era. It was with great difficulty that the
reactionary forces opposed to these progressive principles were reconciled,
India is inhabited by followers of various religions, the Hindus, the
Muslims, the Sikhs, the Anglo-Indians, the Parsis, the Zarastrians, the
Buddhists and numerous others. According to American CIA official hand
book, 1996 edition, there are 80 percent Hindus, 14 percent Muslims, 2.4
percent Christians, 2 percent Sikh, 0.7 percent Buddhists, 0.5 percent
Jains and 0.4 percent others in India. Where as Hindus are in majority, the
members of all communities are in minority. The Muslims constitute the
largest single minority. Friction between Hindus and Muslims during the
pre-independence period was largely the outcome of the British, who
followed the policy of Divide and Rule. This friction ultimately led to the
partition of the country in two parts India and Pakistan. While many
Muslims left India for Pakistan, millions’ of them were persuaded to stay
on in India and were assured security of life, religion and property. In
Pakistan on the other hand, the Hindus were deprived of all their property
in certain areas. A large number of such people settle down in India and
gave rise to the problem of Hindu. Muslim communalism in the past
independence period.
As for as the other minority communities are concerned, they have
thrown their lot with the mainstream of Indian nationalism and do not pore
and threat to the peace of their country. Anglo. Indian community has
been assured adequate protection by the Indian constitution. At present The United Front government at Delhi represents a
deeply felt distrust and rejection of the potentially destructive thrust of
Hindutva, as one had occasion to access the Deve Gowda government
despite its obvious weakness. That confers on UF government a value and
moral authority that goes beyond the size of its parliamentary support,
This government therefore deserves to be treated with respect.
strictly Pakistani point of view, substantial business can be transacted with
it. It can take for reaching decisions because of its moral authority.
However, the question about its survivability persists. There are
indeed fairly realistic hopes, but it probably would survive because it
represents a loose coalition of deeply felt urges and ideas of secularists in
all parties that have been frightened by the dangerous potential of
Hindutva, though they seem unable to work in a durable condition.
hopes,
The political imperative for the government in New Delhi is that the
forces of secularism should be in power. All secularists in India and
abroad are willing to attach importance to the survival of the Deve Gowda
government and it is from that view point, two biggest secular parties BSP
(Bahujan Samaj Party) and SP (Samajnadi Party) passes conventional
wisdom in India, and these parties are treated as secular, though, there are
long, term questions about their philosophical credentials.
In his presidential address at the 53rd session of the Indian National
Congress at Ramgarh in Bihar, on 4th March 1940, Maulana Abul Kalam
Azad said, “Islam has now as great a claim on the soil of India as
Hindustan. If Hindustan has been the religion of the people for several
thousand years, Islam has been their religion for a thousand years. This
joint wealth is the heritage of our common nationality and we do not want
to leave it and go back to the times when this joint life hand not begun. If
there are any Hindus amongst us who desire to bring back the Hindu life
of a thousand years ago and more, they dream and such dreams are vain
fantasies…”
While staying in Geneva with his ailing wife, Nehru wrote to his
friend Syed Mahmud in 1926, “We seem to have been caught in a
whirlpool a mutual hatred, and we go round and round, and down into the
abyss…” Nehru further wrote, “to think that the only remedy is to scotch
our so called religion and secularise our intelligentsia
‘religion in India
will kill that country and its people if it is not subdued. As soon as we
shed our religion, we shall behave better.” In their idealism, the two leaders ignored the harsh realities on the
ground. Already, in the caste ridden environment, secular vision was
collapsing. Even human values were narrowing. In the 19th century,
Bengali literature propagated Muslims under tempestuous epithets. Many
Hindu writers referred Muslims as foreigners. This led to the emergence
of Hindustva at the turn of century as political movement for the upper
caste domination.
Proclaiming socialism and secularism, the founding fathers of the
Indian constitution, had an expensive vision of the future. But the creeping
menace of Hindutva that India could only be a Hindu nation is threatening
the concept of secularism. A genuine secular society introduces diversity
and not uniformity. The Hindutva’s distaste diversity, multiplicity, and
plurality has been expressed in many ways and forms. As members of a
closed society, based on birth and blood, the Hindus have made mosques,
and Muslims writers, painters, dramatists, novelists etc.; their special
targets.
On December 6, 1992, there was darkness at noon in the sovereign
socialist secular democratic Republic of India. The sun of India secularism
was totally eclipsed by a huge crowd of Virhua Hindu Parishad, Bajrang
Dal, RSS and the BJP. Dressed in robes of saffron and crimson, with an
arrogant contempt for and deep seated hostility towards Muslims, they
demolished the Babri Masjid.
Secularism and modernism are the gateway to plenty, prosperity and
peace in the sub continent, but while meeting each other of Hindus and
Muslims in educated or religious societies, Hindus generally say to their
Muslim friends “YA YAVAN”. The word “YAVAN” was used for
Greeks, but after the Hindu revival in 19th century, Muslims are
contemptuously refereed to as ‘Yavan’, it has now been reserved for
Muslim. A Yavan’ is a foreigner and an outsider. Verily, a secular
Indian state in an illusion.