Sultan M Hali
LIFE came to a standstill on 4 August 2019 in India-occupied Kashmir (IoK) on the eve of India’s
illegal annexation of Kashmir and Ladakh. India is neither permitting journalists nor independent observers to enter the Valley, not even leaders of the Opposition. Total curfew prevails, Kashmiris were not permitted to come out for Eid-ul-Azha prayers or even offer Friday prayers. Food, medicine and items of life sustenance are in short supply and the whole Valley has been turned into a giant penal colony. All major Kashmiri leaders are incarcerated while over 15,000 Kashmiris have been arrested. IoK has run short of prison space so according to information trickling in, 7-12,000 arrested Kashmiris have been shifted to jails of New Delhi, Agra and Bhopal via commercial flights.
Narendra Modi is fooling the world that the situation is under control in Kashmir and peace prevails. It is an uneasy peace forced by curfew and the presence of nearly a million troops and Indian law enforcing elements, who wreak havoc upon anyone who tries to violate the curfew. Even staunch BJP allies like Srinagar Mayor Junaid Mattu (Peoples’ Conference), granted the status of a Minister of State (along with his Jammu counterpart) on 21 August has spilled the beans. Speaking to Indian media, Mattu sees the developments since 5 August, “exactly as an overwhelming majority of Kashmiris do — as deeply disturbing and anguishing. The arbitrary disavowal of constitutional guarantees promised to the people of J&K and the break-up of the state has been one of the darkest days in its chequered history.”
To make matters worse, there are confirmed reports that commercial flights from Delhi are bringing RSS extremists to IoK. Reportedly, 3000 RSS trained individuals have been shifted to Pulwama, Srinagar and other areas under the umbrella of Intelligence Agency-equipment with swords & daggers. It is not surprising since Narendra Modi, who proclaims himself as a parcharak (activist) of Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) and despite being the Prime Minister of India, gets his marching orders from the current RSS Sarsanghchalak (Chief Executive) Mohan Madhukar Bhagwat.
I have described in detail the formation of the Sangh Parivar (Family of the [Rashtriya Swayamsevak] Sangh) the organization that promotes Hindu extremism in my latest book Rising Hindutva and its Impact on the Region. The founder of Hindutva ideology is V. D. Savarkar but RSS, the focal organization under the Sangh Parivar was established by his successor Dr. K.B. Hedgewar on 27 September 1925 on the Hindu holy day of Vijaya Dashami (the triumphant tenth day of the moon) in the Maharashtrian city of Nagpur. According to Hindu mythology, this is the day when in a holy war, Lord Rama, the God king, triumphed over Ravana “the demon king”. The Sangh and its offspring organizations such as the BJP have successfully used the name of Rama as a ploy to garner Hindu votes and drum up anti-Muslim hatred. In addition to the assassination of Mahatma Gandhi, the RSS, Jana Sangh (now known as BJP), and VHP or Vishva Hindu Parishad have been implicated in numerous communal riots all over India.
The razing of the Babri Masjid, the planned genocide of the Muslims of Gujarat, the annexation of Kashmir and ethnic cleansing of India to make it the homeland of Hindus alone are part of the RSS agenda. It fearlessly propagates that India is a Hindu Rashtra (nation) distinguished from Hindu Raj V D Savarkar’s book titled Hindutva expounding the theory of Hindu Rashtra, had been read by Hedgewar. He even met Savarkar in the jail in 1924, prior to the formation of RSS. Hindutva, according to Savarkar, “is not a word but a history …. Hinduism is only a derivative, a part of Hindutva”. According to Savarkar, “This one word, Hindutva, ran like a vital spinal cord through our whole body and made the Nayars of Malabar weep over the sufferings of the Brahmins in Kashmir”. Thus, Hindutva is the connecting force of all Hindus of the Bharat Varsha. Hedgewar, the founder of the RSS, as a staunch Maharashtriyan Brahmin was looking for a chance to effectively oppose the three enemies of that time namely, “The emergence of Socialism, the fear of Muslim domination of the country, and the revolt of the lower castes and the attendant disruption of the Varnashramadharma”.
Even a casual observer can see that over three hundred years’ rule of India by Muslims and later the British, did not target the Hindus. However, after coming into power in 1947, according to a ruthless plan in the likeness of Fascism and Nazism, India is being cleaned of its minorities. Gau Rakhshak (Cow Protection), lynching Muslims under the pretext of their slaughtering cows, Ghar Wapsi (re-conversion to Hinduism) are ploys to subjugate non-Muslims and even lower caste Hindus the Dalit to convert to Hinduism or leave India. A study of the downfall of the Muslims in Spain after an 800 years’ rule was carried out and similar strategy has been adopted.
The RSS goons in the IoK are not only terrorizing the Muslims but forcing them to abandon their homes and property. The move has been prevalent for decades. On 26 March 2004 Frontline reported some of the writings found on the walls in Orissa, which read, “Hang those who are trying to convert people from Hinduism” “Awakening of Hinduism is the awakening of the country” “Beware! Conversion will not be tolerated in the land of Jagannath” “Beware! Those who are converting are anti-nationals” “Stop conversion. Our sacred duty is to preserve Hinduism.”
—The writer is retired PAF Group Captain and a TV talk show host.
