Personal view by Dr Jagroop Singh, student of Sikh Studies (No funding or conflict of interest)
Once upon a time, very important people like the Queen or Prime Ministers had the privilege of speaking to the people in a broadcast. However, these days any Tom, Dick or Harry is projecting their views on social media mimicking VIP’s. Two things need to be borne in mind, firstly your status (who are you?) and secondly, the importance/value of your message. Mindful of this, Lord Remi Ranger as the chairman of the British Sikh Association sent out a “Happy Vaisakhi” message on Instagram: –
“On this day in 1699, the 10th Sikh Guru established the brotherhood of Khalsa to fight against tyranny and injustice of the then Mogul Emperor, Aurangzeb. Diversity has to be accepted, respected and if need be, defended. He defended the diversity of India as we enjoy it today. It was the brotherhood of Khalsa that stopped the relentless invasion of India”.
It is the ‘enjoyment of the diversity in India’ claim that needs critical evaluation given the prevailing difficulties of minorities. Even the media is under intense scrutiny and pressure from the state and extreme political factions. Undue interference and dire threats to their safety and existence have been reported (Dutt). A significant portion of the media, referred to as ‘Godi media’, have abandoned the fundamental principles of journalism.
In terms of minorities, Sikhs have been noted to be brave in defending themselves but above all, protecting other persecuted minorities. Their unwavering belief in their religion, as a uniquely independent system of governance, proved to be a key asset in their success. They maintain respect for all religions including Islam, despite it being practised by the Moguls. It is important to point out that the conflict with the Mogul empire never resulted in hatred of Islam, as is often projected. So much so, Sikh Gurus and the Panth have always communicated for people to “be good Muslims or be good Hindus”. Of course, the same applies for Sikhs being “good Sikhs” as it is not an automatic given. In other words, treat people as you wish to be treated, like fellow human beings but always be mindful to respect inter-religious boundaries.
Contemporary communal politics have put ‘minority’ populations at the sharp end of exclusion from the ‘Hindu and Hindi’ Indian nationalism. In 1984, the Blue Star and Woodrose operations were followed by Delhi pogroms as the Sikh community felt the full force of the state apparatus. Then a decade of extrajudicial killings was exposed by Jaswant Singh Khalra, who himself was murdered (a true ‘shaheed’) in the process (Ensaaf).
The sit-in-protest against the Citizen Amendment Act (CAA) in late February 2020 was subjected to a swift and violent attack by Hindu mobs. They were incited by the incendiary speech of Kapil Mishra (BJP leader) with the deputy commissioner of N.E. Delhi Police standing next to him. A chilling video on social media emerged, showing police, quietly standing by and even participating in violent repression.
The Hindutva communal ideologues label Muslims as foreigners or of being ‘old Hindus’ converted into Islam centuries ago. There is historical evidence of Indian census category of ‘Hindu Mohammedans’ as late as 1911. In recent times, Muslims have been defined as figures of hate, frequently targeted for cow slaughter crimes and grooming Hindu girls (Mukherjee et al). However, Hindus have a selective amnesia regarding their conversion of tribal people into the Brahmanical social order, termed Varatyastoma and Paravartana (Bal, 2009).
“Dalits are currently “waging a centuries-old struggle against a system which denies them the basic dignity”. They are subjected to a “systematic dehumanization” by the upper class/caste of the ruling elite. This has resulted in a resurgence of interest in Dr. Bhim Rao Ambedkar’s writings from which his followers are finding great strength and inspiration.
The farming laws introduced last year in an underhand manner produced huge countrywide opposition. Dissent in the form of legitimate protest is poorly tolerated and involved heavy handed policing with tear gas and water cannon deployment. This attracted negative labeling of protestors as Khalistanis, urban Naxalites and even PM Modi referring to them as “Parjeev”, a highly derogatory term. Soon the “toolkit” shared by Greta Thunberg on the farmers protest led to the arrest and maltreatment of climate the activist, Disha Ravi. The pop star Rihanna’s supporting commentary for Indian farmers resulted in her being banned from visiting India (Mohua Moitra’s parliamentary speech, February 2020).
International attention was focused on India following the gang rape of a young woman in Delhi whilst travelling on a bus at night. Despite the frantic efforts by the male escort, one wonders why it took over an hour to raise the alarm and summon for help? This incidence was widely condemned and led to significant exploration of age-old traditions and social values. The gender imbalance of the population and traditional Indian culture were highlighted by the BBC documentary, India’s Daughter (2014). However, Kavita Krishnan suggests that more complex contemporary forces like caste, politics and capitalism are responsible in promoting women’s subordination. Unfortunately, this horrific case is only the ‘tip of an iceberg’ that continues to shame our nation.
It has to be said that India’s reputation for diversity and common sense values is being scrutinized and monitored by international bodies. This is reflected in India’s Democracy Index falling from 27th in 2014 down to 53rd in 2020 in the global rankings. As people of Indian descent we feel a sense of pain and shame and take no pleasure in criticizing our ‘mother land’. However, it is important to address the dissonance in what is being put ‘out there’ through introspection, discussion &/or speaking out. In an era of ‘photo journalism’, all politicians use religion as a strategic campaign strategy. Unfortunately, contemporary India does not match the philosophy of Guru Gobind Singh Ji. Therefore, making it a rather sad Vaisakhi.
References
Bal, Hartosh (2009) A Bible on Hinduism
A Bible on Hinduism
Bal, Hartosh (2020) 1984: When the Delhi Police abetted an attack on another minority (The Caravan) 1 March 2020
https://caravanmagazine.in/conflict/1984-when-delhi-police-abetted-attack-another-minority-excerpt
Dutt, Barkha (2021) Opinion: I’m an Indian journalist. A video called for me to be hanged for my reporting
(The Washington Post) 24 February 2021
Ensaaf (2011) The Murder of Human Rights Defender Jaswant Singh Khalra
https://ensaaf.org/jaswant-singh-khalra/
Friedrich, Pieter (2018) Bharat Bhand And the Dalit Struggle Against Dehumanization (Independent publication)
Krishnan, Kavita (2015) Rape culture and sexism in globalizing India (Sur – International Journal on Human Rights) pages 255-259
https://sur.conectas.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/18_SUR-22_ENGLISH_KAVITA_KRISHNAN-pdf
Mukherjee Aditya, Mukherjee Mridula & Mahajan Sucheta (2008) RSS, School Texts and the murder of Mahatama Gandhi; The Hindu Communal Project (SAGE publications)
Singh, Rajveer (2021) The Revelation of the Khalsa: completing Guru Nanak’s Mission (khalsadiary.com)
The Economic Times of India (2021) India falls to 53rd rank in EIU’s Democracy Index, dubbed as flawed democracy (3 February 2021)
Khalsa Diary 