Congress has allowed this silent invasion

Author:  Kanchan Gupta, in The Pioneer on 29th July 12 inShare1 The violence that raged in Bodo areas of Assam for almost a fortnight reflects the increasing resentment against immigrants from Bangladesh and the rising belligerence of Muslims who have sneaked into India illegally When the worst becomes the norm, anything less than that is peddled as good news by the media in collaboration with a politically bankrupt Congress and the morally bankrupt regimes it heads in New Delhi and in the States. And so it is that much is being made of "normalcy slowly returning to Assam's violence-hit Bodo areas, where week-long communal clashes claimed 45 lives, with no reports of any fresh incidents of violence being reported from anywhere in the affected areas since Thursday". There shall now be a collective sigh of relief and the 'useful idiots' of the commentariat will get busy with penning vacuous articles lauding Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and the Congress high command (where would the party and its Governments be without the shining leadership of Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi?) for bringing the rioting to a halt. In the paradise inhabited by fools, the lingua franca is tailored to meet their exacting demands — for instance, lesser mortals would hesitate to draw too fine a distinction between bad and worse while I-am-so-clever commentators and I-am-more-clever-than-you politicians would insist bad is better than worse. That would explain why much is being made of "normalcy slowly returning to Assam's violence-hit Bodo areas" although nothing could be more absurd than that. The situation was never normal in the 'violence-hit Bodo areas'; the week-long rioting that has left many dead (never mind the official toll) and tens of thousands of Bodos seeking shelter in refugee camps (it's strange how Indians are ever so often rendered 'refugees' in their own land!) is only a manifestation of the abnormal situation that has been born of the Congress's cynical politics of rank minorityism and allowed to fester by the party's Governments in Dispur and New Delhi. The killing, the looting and the arson may stop in the next few days, the Bodos who have fled their home and hearth may return some day, but that would be no measure of 'normalcy'. For decades tribals and indigenous people of Assam — in fact, the entire North-East — have been seething with anger over the relentless assault on their land, their customs, their culture and their way of life by Bangladeshi Muslims who sneak in through a border that has been purposefully left porous, slyly settle down on land that does not belong to them, illegally secure citizenship through ration cards helpfully provided by the Congress which then goes on to include their names on electoral rolls. That anger turns into murderous rage when it boils over. But it does not dissipate; it simmers and erupts into violence again. There's nothing ethnic about Assam's indigenous people (Bodos, for example, and Assamese Muslims included) striking out at Bangladeshi intruders, and belligerent Muslim invaders (illegal immigration is a silent invasion, an act of aggression as the Supreme Court described it while striking down the infamous IMDT Act), once they are sure of their numerical strength and political clout, and feel no need to be meek any more, retaliating with greater violence. Little that has appeared in newspapers and been shown on news television reflects the magnitude of the latest round of communal violence to visit Assam, and even less explains why conflict is inevitable. That is how it is meant to be, lest the people know of the truth, and the truth exposes the Congress for what it has long been guilty of: Subverting India's national interest for a fistful of votes at election time. Hence, to feel the anger and gauge the rage among the Assamese, it would be useful to scan social media platforms and blogs. Here's an example. Blogger Majid Rehman, an Assamese, writes on the Kokrajhar riots: "The Government neither has the desire OR the competence to do anything. And while Governments might change, the people running the new Governments will still be the same ineffectual fools. Or Machiavellian monsters! A state machinery that takes two weeks to apprehend an eve teasing thug will never be able to clear the scum from your home. Make no mistake about that. "But what am I so angry about? Bangladeshis are not new in Assam. Every maid, every jugali, every rickshaw-puller since my youth has always been a 'miya'. We lived our lives against this constant backdrop of checked lungis and cheap printed sarees… There is a difference now, a strong one! The rickshaw-puller from 20 years back would/could never look you in the eye. The maid did not have a son who was a two-bit politician in some All-Assam Minority party. Then, they were the menials and they knew it. Now they are the vote-bank. The X-factor. The minority vote. And the eyes have started to rise. In some parts of the State the eyes are even tinted with scorn. They now run amok, burn villages and threaten to do worse. "And that is the root of my anger, my fear, my impotent rant. For years I believed disfranchisement was the answer. If they wouldn't vote, there could be no vote bank politics. If there was no vote-bank there would be no mollycoddling, and hence no resultant swagger. Ladies and gentlemen, today I think even that ship has sailed. Just sheer numbers indicate that they don't really need the sops anymore. They are ready to bite the hand that feeds. Right now it is contained to the Bodo lands, but it's a matter of time till the circus breaches the bastions. And they, like the Brahmaputra, continue to flow in..." This is an accurate measure of how worrisome the situation is, how deep-seated is the resentment against the silent invasion from the east. But, as I have often argued in the past, those who stand to gain from the votes of India's bogus citizens as well as those who believe that there is nothing sacred about nationality, leave alone the nation, have successfully struck the issue of illegal immigration from Bangladesh off the agenda of public discourse. Practitioners of cynical vote-bank politics and fake secularism, who also happen to extol tolerance of the intolerable as the litmus test of liberalism, have united to erase what should have agitated every Indian from the collective consciousness of this nation. And they have succeeded in doing so. Nothing else explains why illegal immigration from Bangladesh finds no mention in either political debate or policy deliberation. Any effort, no matter how feeble, to raise the issue is met not only with fierce resistance but slander and worse. Yet, the indisputable fact is that Assam and the other States in India's North-East, as also West Bengal and Bihar, continue to face a relentless tide of illegal immigrants from Bangladesh. This 'silent invasion' by millions of people over the years has been encouraged by the Congress and the CPI(M), apart from their 'natural' allies, who swear by virtuous secularism and highfalutin constitutionalism only to violate it in practice. Illegal immigrants are not only encouraged by these parties to enter India they are also provided with 'documents' to help them settle on land that belongs to others. Their names are entered on voters lists, thus creating a vast vote-bank of aliens who legally have no right to vote in India. This fraud has been perpetrated over the decades and the Congress has been its beneficiary in Assam, while in West Bengal the Left has used Bangladeshis to inflate its vote-share significantly. Elsewhere, others have been similarly tempted. (The writer is a senior journalist based in Delhi.)

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With kind Regards,
Jagdish

Fwd: {satyapravah} Dilemma of South Asia: Is India a friend or foe? A Sri Lankan perspective-J Jayasundera-27 July 2012

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Subject: {satyapravah} Dilemma of South Asia: Is India a friend or foe? A Sri Lankan perspective-J Jayasundera-27 July 2012
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Dilemma of South Asia: Is India a friend or foe? A Sri Lankan perspective

J Jayasundera

27 July 2012

 

All Asians are children of the Himalayas – children born around a civilization that encompasses the mighty rivers of the Ganges, Brahmaputra, Shanghai, and Mekong, etc, all supplied by the mighty mountains. There are two daughters: one on the west, mother India, and one on the east, the middle kingdom China. Both these civilizations have had a great impact on their neighbours, but between them there was an ever-binding relationship with an ethos of harmony and intellectual intercourse for thousands of years.

 

The best gift India gave China was Buddhism, best exemplified by Okkakura Tensin who said, "It was the compassion of Buddhism that elevates a lowly animal to the level of a human being that made Confucius China accept Buddhism". It was that humanity that exuded out of India that made her neighbours call her mother India. A nation of the Gandhis, Tagores, that earned the respect of its neighbours who were guided by India in their social and spiritual upliftment. Sri Lankans be it Sinhalese or Tamil originate from India. The Sri Lankans have a special relationship which is historically based on Indian philosophy, immigration, and so on. Has India changed, is she a step-mother to her children, her neighbours, and her own impoverished citizens, is a discussion all south Asians should address.

 

Sri Lanka and India: Historic Relationship

 

To understand the historic relationship, the basic question one needs to understand is 'who is a Sinhalese?' Sinhalese who are 75% of the population probably originate from west Asia, but over the years gradually accepted immigrants from India with open arms and integrated them into the Sinhala nation. This is best explained by the erudite Sinhala Minister C.P. De Silva who told a Tamil communalist G.G. Ponnambalam, "A few generations ago my family was Tamil". 

 

The Sinhala language originated from the early Indian language Prakrit, but 50% of the words are now Tamil. Sinhala businessmen start their day by going and praying in the Hindu temple. Buddha is the ninth reincarnation of Vishnu. In spite of all the jingoism, Sri Lanka reflects a society that is truly Indian with a mixture of genes that encompasses the whole of India and enjoys the philosophy of both Hinduism and Buddhism. The Sinhalese in that sense is truly Indian.

 

Indian Hegemony and Western Influence

 

The greatest achievement of colonialism is the slavery of the mind. The west believes in the philosophy "Might is Right". From the day Vasco de Gama invaded the spice market in Calicut, subjugation of Asia has been by violence, unfortunately using Asians to kill Asians. The Javanese were used to quell the Sri Lankan uprising of Uva Welessa where poor Sinhalese were killed in thousands including all boys over the age of 16 years.

 

The spirit remains the same today. Funded by foreigners, jingoism propagated by the international media, a moral zeitgeist of a war against terrorism created and perpetrated by the same people with an economic policy of creative destruction, rules Asia. Divide and rule was the policy of the colonialists, the division they created by favoritism is still used to destabilize. The sole aim is destabilization, subjugation and exploitation. India knowingly or unknowingly plays a big part in the aspirations of the west pertaining to south Asia. 

 

India has been crowned by the Americans as the regional power, best epitomized by Hillary Clinton who said the interests of the Americans and Indians were the same. Regular consultations are carried out with the Indian leadership which has been Obama-ised.

 

When he was elected he said "yes we can". We thought this was morality, non-violence, but what he meant was 'I will do one better than George Bush'. Now, innocent children and women are killed in Afghanistan and Pakistan by drone attacks daily, and not one word do you hear from this regional leader (India).

 

Is it servility or is it that with the Americans, India can dominate and exploit the south Asians. Where is the humanity that India propagated to the world, the non-violence, the humanity? Is this because India is now led by an Italian catholic? Is the policy of India no different from the West's "might is right".

 

Destabilization of Sri Lanka: Indian effort

 

1.     Training and arming Tamils

2.     Direct political pressure through Indian high commissioner Dixit

3.     Threat of invasion

4.     Violations of air space of Sri Lanka and the dhal drops

5.     Saving Prabahakaran during Vedamarrachi offensive

6.     Alleged participation of RAW in the massacre of innocent pilgrims in Anuradhapura

7.     The interference daily of "viceroy" in the form Indian high commissioner

8.     Forcible insertion of 13th amendment in Sri Lankan constitution

 

 

The lesson we learnt from a great Indian, the Buddha, was that violence begets violence. Was it logical for India to have instigated violence in her own backyard? Was it not logical that this violence and sectarianism would finally engulf India? Ironically, it did end up killing the son of the instigator of this violence, Indira Gandhi.

 

 

Is it god's justice for the killing of innocent fathers, mothers and children and the agony it has caused to many a family. Is this violence at the behest of agents of foreign countries who had infiltrated the establishment? Recent revelations by veteran diplomat R.K. Nehru in the Frontline magazine on India-China relations indicate that possibility. India today is hated and mistrusted by both Tamils and Sinhalese. Prabahakaran and the LTTE have killed more Indian soldiers than Pakistan, India's greatest enemy.

 

 

Destabilization agenda of the West

 

 

1.     India was aware that both the LTTE and the Sri Lankan Army were being armed and trained at the same time in Israel, as per the revelations of an Israeli dissident. (In fairness, it is said that when Indira Gandhi learnt of this from Indian intelligence, she warned President Jayewardene and had him expel the Israeli advisers in Sri Lanka. Both leaders were subsequently assassinated in circumstances that have never been fully explained).

2.     The Sri Lanka Diaspora was encouraged to propagate the myth of discrimination and human rights abuse of the Tamils.

3.     India allegedly sided with Western attempts to save Prabhakaran and his senior fighters in the critical end moments of the war.

4.     The Catholic Church and World Council of Churches were involved in the insurrection and gave leadership to the movement both in India and Sri Lanka.

5.     Refuges were created who could easily be converted to Christianity with ill-gotten money from ponzy schemes.

6.     War crimes allegations made against the Sri Lankan Army; UNHCR ably supported by India to bring pressure on Colombo to subjugate the country and pursue policies detrimental to its citizens.

7.     During the 1980s, the West via CIA agents gave warnings to Sri Lankans about Indian intentions with a view to create more distrust between the two nations.

 

Propaganda, Myths and the International Media

 

Reading through the international media about the discrimination against the Tamils one gets the impression that Sri Lanka is an apartheid state. The truth is quite to the contrary, as reflected by a Tamil economic migrant who said he did not know what discrimination was until he came to Britain! The Tamils live in the south in peace and harmony. They economically benefited by migration after the 1983 riots and their investments have fueled a housing boom in the Tamil residential areas in the south.

 

Tamil today is a national language. In the wake of the Arab Spring and problems in Syria, one needs to reassess the 1983 riots. It will not be surprising if this whole sordid affair was instigated from abroad and the blame thrust on the Sinhalese Buddhists who had nothing to do with it. Not surprisingly, the international media was present at the spot, ready to transmit to the world the riots as they happened, a privilege they did not offer when 75000 Sinhalese youth were killed revolting against an unjust economy perpetrated on them by the IMF and World Bank, and protesting against Indian hegemony.

 

It is interesting that Jayalalithaa became more vociferous against Sri Lanka after her meeting with Hillary Clinton. The crime of Sri Lanka was that at one stage she was 27th in the league of Quality of Life with the lowest GDP: a veritable thorn in the side of Western neo-colonialism.

 

Today, the propaganda machine is in full swing, War crimes, discrimination against Tamils, and a load of propaganda geared to achieve economic and political subjugation of this small nation. The truth is Sri Lankans want to be left in peace to get on with their lives with freedom. Foreign influence has perpetrated political violence, corruption and poor governance. If poor governance affects the Tamils, it also affects the Sinhalese.

 

Peace in Sri Lanka      

 

For 30 years, thanks to our neighbour, 100,000 people were killed, many maimed and many forced to emigrate. India now is pushing the illegal 13th amendment on Sri Lanka to create a mono-ethnic northern province, whilst 60% of the Tamils are living in the so-called Sinhala areas created by the British colonialists.

 

Incidentally, the provincial councils instigated by the 13th amendment have become a white elephant costing billions of rupees, infiltrated by political criminals responsible for the epidemic of rapes, abuse, a legacy of the injustice perpetrated by India. The Sinhalese are being pauperized by an IMF-led World Bank programs which borrow in the name of the many and lend the money to corporates and businesses which are controlled by the remnants of British colonialism, mostly Christians and Tamils. There is a transfer of resources to the businessmen (wheeler dealers) at the expense of farmers and the real producers who work in conjunction with the foreigners. This is no different from India. Unfortunately the Sinhalese are not businessmen.

 

The human rights of the Sinhalese are blatantly abused by poor governance and they are being ethnically cleansed from economic centres. So it is ironic that India cares for the human rights violations of the Tamils but not the Sinhalese. This policy of division favouring the Tamils will only lead to balkanization of Sri Lanka and violence and destabilization of the southern front of India. 

 

So, what is it that drives India - hegemony and subjugation, or the instigation of her masters in the West? Whichever way one looks at it, it is not in the best interests of the real India. Peace in Sri Lanka can only be achieved by good governance in all the institutions working for the welfare of the many. You cannot rid the country of the Sinhalese, Tamils or any other community or separate them. Nor will they ever agree to subjugation forever.

 

India-China relationship: Peace in Asia

 

Today India is part and parcel of American plans to contain China. It has pushed the Indian leadership to become the largest arms buyer in the world, a policy one can hardly justify when 300 million Indians are living on less than $1/day. The whole of India has to pay so that the rulers can wear the crown of 'Regional Power'. Does it make sense, is it moral, is a question every Indian must ask.

 

In the wake of B.K. Nehru's revelations (he was Indian ambassador to China in the 1960s), one needs to reassess the real Indo-Chinese relations. The media hype and political pressures that made Nehru decide to be obstinate on the border issue when the lines of demarcation was not clearly defined need analysis.

 

B.K. Nehru indicates that the Chinese proposals were a fair basis for negotiation. It would suffice to indicate a quote by Chairman Mao (CHINA by Henry Kissinger) just prior to the 1962 Indo-Chinese border war, "China and India enjoyed centuries of flourishing religious and economic exchange. China and India were not doomed to perpetual enmity, they could enjoy long periods of peace, but to do so China had to knock India to the negotiating table".

 

Hence, one must seriously scrutinize the vision of Indian foreign policy experts – was the establishment infiltrated by foreign agents or was it influenced by a colonial mindset? There is no justification for the mutual mistrust that has been created, or the jingoism promoted by the media. There will be peace and prosperity in Asia only be achieved when India and China review and regenerate the ancient relationship.

 

Failure of Indian Foreign Policy

 

Not a day passes without one hearing of an Indian official visiting Sri Lanka to dominate and influence the policies of the island nation. The "Ugly Indian" is in the minds of every Sri Lankan; so also in the rest of South Asia. In a neighbourhood where India is joined by an umbilical cord of religious, ethnic and philosophical ties, this is most unfortunate. The latest connection with the Americans in an anti-China front must certainly create an impression that the foreign policy of India is linked to the foreign policy of America. This is not in the best interests of India, the sub-continent, or for that matter Asia.

 

 

The author is a Sri Lanka national

 

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Seminar on interlocutors reports of Jammuu and Kashmir

A seminar organised by India Foundation at India International Centre New Delhi 21.07.2012  on interlocutors report on Jammuu and Kashmir.

 

 

The seminar was well attended by intellectuals from across the country and many retired military officers. The Opposition Leader in Rajya Sabha and senior BJP leader Arun Jaitley was the principal speaker in the seminar and four member panel of speakers consisted of Dilip Padgoankar,  BJP National Executive Member and chief spokesman of J&K Dr Jitendra Singh and former Union Minister Arif Mohammed Khan. The interaction was moderated by BJP national spokesperson Nirmala Sitharaman.

 

Addressing the seminar Mr Jaitley said that the entire problem of Kashmir is because of faulty Nehruvian vision that has proved costly for nation. He said that Kashmir is an unfinished agenda for Pakistan and Government of India has run out of ideas which is evident from the fact that the UPA Government under Dr Manmohan Singh has been appointing Working Groups and interlocutors without any fair policy.

Mr Jaitley was very critical of Justice Sageer Ahmed report which according to him was prepared when Sageer Ahmed was ailing and finally died after which the report was submitted to State Government without placing it before the leaders who were the members of the Working Group including him (Jaitley).

The BJP leader said that the cross border terrorism is an important factor supporting militancy in J&K and it suits the separatist leaders like Syed Ali Shah Geelani for whom their politics survives only if Kashmir remains tense. He said the concessions can be made to the common people and not to the separatists of Kashmir. He also pointed out that the Kashmir issue might have not existed had veteran freedom fighter and then Home Minister Sardar Patel not been kept out from the scene. He said it was unfortunate that the veteran leader was not given the charge to deal with J and K.

The most dangerous thing in the report is that they (interlocutors) have diluted India's stand on PoK by changing the nomenclature to Pakistan-administered Kashmir, Jaitley said. It is legitimising Pakistan's claim on the occupied territory, he said. He also pointed out a number of similarities between the recommendations made by the interlocutors and those suggested by former Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf. Musharraf talked about things like joint administration and control and soft borders. This report also touches on opening up the LoC for trade and tourism, he said. The interlocutors' report would take the state back to its 1953 position and this was unacceptable, Jaitley reiterated.

Dr Jitendra Singh forthrightly questioned the psyche and intentions of the interlocutors. He said, "we don't look at J&K as a dispute or an issue because our position is that J&K is very much a part of Indian Union like any other state. We also reiterate that those who look at J&K as a dispute or an issue are ones who have a vested interest in keeping the Kashmir pot boiling and projecting J&K as disputed for their personnel interests. There is no dispute over J&K either historically or Constitutionally particularly after the 1994 Parliament resolution stating that only un addressed aspect of J&K is how to retrieve the PoK.

Dr Jitendra Singh said the accession of J&K with Indian Union was never conditional and in fact ratified by J&K Assembly in 1954, which consisted of 75 MLAs from NC. The Constitution of J&K applicable from 1957 states in Section 3 that J&K is an integral part of India and there can be no amendment to that. He said Kashmiriyat stands for composite culture and it can't be restored without the return of Kashmiri Pandits to Valley.

Arif Mohammed Khan said that from his experience as a Minister during the Indira Gandhi's regime he understands that Kashmir has to be seen from wider perspective. From last 30 years Pakistan and ISI has been working to destablise the region in the name of religion, he added. Expressing his concern on this he said that the issue of J&K requires a deeper analysis and approach.

Defending the report submitted by the Interlocutors Dilip Padgoankar claimed that false allegations are made that the report is partisan. He referred to several pages of report to claim that all the regions have been equal mention in the report. The suggestions to review the provisions of post 1953 Indian Constitution was not made with the intension of encouraging separatist sentiment, he added. He said as of today whatever is the locus standi the report has tried to give the best possible suggestions on each aspect.

He said certain suggestions have been made about AFSPA but not clearly recommended its revocation. In the question answer session that followed several retired army officers were aggrieved at the manner in which the issue of Army and AFSPA in J&K is being handled.

 

Head of interlocutors team on J&K Dalip Padgoankar tried hard to defend their report, in a first ever free public interaction on it, here on Saturday. He failed miserably when he chose to keep mum on a commoner's question, 'what recommendations in the report are in the interest of the nation?'

While defending the report, though Padgaonkar claimed that he has not ignored the issue of Kashmiri Pandits or refugees. He accepted Islamic radicalization of youth in Kashmir is a fact but has not found any place in the report. For the first time after the release of interlocutors report to public on May 24 the head of interlocutors team on J&K Dalip Padgoankar had offered himself to a free public interaction at a seminar organised by India Foundation at India International Centre.

 

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Seminar: Paryavaran ane mahil

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To: chairman-gpcb <chairman-gpcb@gujarat.gov.in>, bhadesia@hotmail.com,  pradip1963@ymail.com
Subject: photos shaila bs tree chetana

Today's Jammy and Kashmir

sartri chetna seminar; mahila ane paryavaran

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News about interview in Sadhna

Gujarat
'RSS does not take any decision under pressure'
Last Waked: Wednesday, July 11,2012,
Tags: Gujarat RSS, RSS
Ahmedabad: Amidst bitter infighting between various factions of the Gujarat BJP, the RSS on Wednesday attempted to dispel the perception that it has taken Chief Minister Narendra Modi's side by stating that the Sangh does not take any decision under political pressure.
The RSS said that the infighting is the internal matter of the party but Sangh in such a situation remains in touch with leaders and discusses with them what should be their role as a 'swayamsevak'.
The statements come at a time when there is a general perception that the powerful Hindu outfit has aligned with Modi and BJP is facing state elections later this year.
The Sanjay Joshi feud, the issue of reliving pracharak Bhaskar Rao Damle, who is supporter of anti-Modi group leader within BJP Keshubhai Patel from its state executive and Modi's bid for prime ministerial post, have created an impression that the RSS is supporting Modi.
In an interview published in 'Sadhna' a Gujarati mouthpiece of the RSS here, Gujarat region head of the organisation Jayantibhai Bhadesia denied that removal of Damle or any other decision were taken under political or any other pressure from the state chief minister.
"RSS never takes any decision under political pressure. Throughout the years, RSS has continued to stick to its own system and well defined policies," Bhadesia said.
Ahead of the forthcoming assembly election, it seems that instead of working unitedly the BJP is on the roads of fragmentation, as former chief minister Patel and other senior leaders have indicated that they will float their own political front to take on Modi in the state elections.
Expressing his view on the role of RSS when the infighting is at its peak, Bhadesia said, "It is the internal matter of BJP. RSS believes that everybody has to mind its own business.
But RSS continues to keep in touch with its swayam sevaks and guide them appropriately."
Sources in the RSS said that joint general secretary of RSS, Suresh Soni had recently visited the state and met both Modi and Patel to broker peace between the two warring groups but the attempt has not fructified.





RSS does not take any decision under pressure: Gujarat RSS chief
Published: Wednesday, Jul 11, 2012, 16:13 IST
Place: Ahmedabad | Agency: PTI
Amdist bitter infighting between various factions of the Gujarat BJP, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) on Wednesday attempted to dispel the perception that it has taken Chief Minister Narendra Modi's side by stating that the Sangh does not take any decision under political pressure.
The RSS said that the infighting is the internal matter of the party but Sangh in such a situation remains in touch with leaders and discusses with them what should be their role as a 'swayamsevak'.
The statements come at a time when there is a general perception that the powerful Hindu outfit has aligned with Modi and BJP is facing state elections later this year.
The Sanjay Joshi feud, the issue of reliving pracharak Bhaskar Rao Damle, who is supporter of anti-Modi group leader within BJP Keshubhai Patel from its state executive and Modi's bid for prime ministerial post, have created an impression that the RSS is supporting Modi.
In an interview published in Sadhna a Gujarati mouthpiece of the RSS in Ahmedabad, Gujarat region head of the organisation Jayantibhai Bhadesia denied that removal of Damle or any other decision were taken under political or any other pressure from the state chief minister.
"RSS never takes any decision under political pressure. Throughout the years, RSS has continued to stick to its own system and well defined policies," Bhadesia said.
Ahead of the forthcoming assembly election, it seems that instead of working unitedly the BJP is on the roads of fragmentation, as former chief minister Patel and other senior leaders have indicated that they will float their own political front to take on Modi in the state elections.
Expressing his view on the role of RSS when the infighting is at its peak, Bhadesia said, "It is the internal matter of BJP. RSS believes that everybody has to mind its own business. But RSS continues to keep in touch with its swayamsevaks and guide them appropriately."
Sources in the RSS said that joint general secretary of RSS, Suresh Soni had recently visited the state and met both Modi and Patel to broker peace between the two warring groups but the attempt has not fructified.
The infighting between Modi and Keshubhai groups, has also divided the Sangh parivar in Gujarat down the line when the state is considered to be laboratory for RSS.
Bhadesia said it is baseless to say that RSS work in the state has been affeced due to infighting.
"It is totally baseless to say that the work has been affected due to infighting. In fact looking at the progress of RSS 'shakhas' in the state.. the work has increased by as much as 10%," Bhadesia said.
Bhadesia also went on to say in the mouthpiece that a report recently published in one of the local dailies alleging that as RSS runs on money provided by Gujarat government and that is the reason that organisation is taking decision in favour of Modi, are far from truth.
"The allegations are far from truth. I reiterate that RSS work runs exclusively on the sums offered by its devoted swayamsevaks," Bhadesia said.
Regarding the relieving of three senior pracharaks from state including Damle, who has taken side of Patel, Bhadesia said, "RSS has its own system for aged senior pracharaks and they have not been sacked. For the sake of age and health, this system has been introduced".
RSS publicity head of Gujarat Pradip Jain told PTI that the article has been published in the weekly magazine of RSS Sadhna as there were misconceptions regarding the Sangh and may be the publishers thought that views of the Sangh should come in front of the people.





RSS does not take any decision under pressure: Guj RSS chief
Amidst bitter infighting between various factions of the Gujarat BJP, the RSS on Wednesday attempted to dispel the perception that it has taken Chief Minister Narendra Modi's side by stating that the Sangh does not take any decision under political pressure.
The RSS said the infighting is the internal matter of the party but Sangh in such a situation remains in touch with leaders and discusses with them what should be their role as a 'swayamsevak'.
The statements come at a time when there is a general perception that the powerful Hindu outfit has aligned with Modi and BJP is facing state elections later this year.
The Sanjay Joshi feud, the issue of relieving pracharak Bhaskar Rao Damle, who is supporter of anti-Modi group leader within BJP Keshubhai Patel from its state executive and Modi's bid for prime ministerial post, have created an impression that the RSS is supporting Modi.
In an interview published in 'Sadhna' a Gujarati mouthpiece of the RSS, Gujarat region head of the organisation Jayantibhai Bhadesia denied that removal of Damle or any other decision were taken under political or any other pressure from the state chief minister.
"RSS never takes any decision under political pressure. Throughout the years, RSS has continued to stick to its own system and well defined policies," Bhadesia said.
Ahead of the forthcoming Assembly election, it seems that instead of working unitedly the BJP is on the roads of fragmentation, as former chief minister Patel and other senior leaders have indicated that they will float their own political front to take on Modi in the state elections.
Expressing his view on the role of RSS when the infighting is at its peak, Bhadesia said, "It is the internal matter of BJP. RSS believes that everybody has to mind its own business. But RSS continues to keep in touch with its swayamsevaks and guide them appropriately."
Sources in the RSS said joint general secretary of RSS, Suresh Soni had recently visited the state and met both Modi and Patel to broker peace between the two warring groups but the attempt has not fructified.
The infighting between Modi and Keshubhai groups, has also divided the Sangh parivar in Gujarat down the line when the state is considered to be laboratory for RSS.
Bhadesia said it is baseless to say that RSS work in the state has been affected due to infighting.
"It is totally baseless to say that the work has been affected due to infighting. In fact looking at the progress of RSS 'shakhas' in the state.. the work has increased by as much as 10 per cent," Bhadesia said.
Bhadesia also went on to say in the mouthpiece that a report recently published in one of the local dailies alleging that as RSS runs on money provided by Gujarat government and that is the reason that organisation is taking decision in favour of Modi, are far from truth.
"The allegations are far from truth. I reiterate that RSS work runs exclusively on the sums offered by its devoted swayamsevaks," Bhadesia said.
Regarding the relieving of three senior pracharaks from state including Damle, who has taken side of Patel, Bhadesia said, "RSS has its own system for aged senior pracharaks and they have not been sacked. For the sake of age and health, this system has been introduced".
RSS publicity head of Gujarat Pradip Jain said the article has been published in the weekly magazine of RSS 'Sadhna' as there were misconceptions regarding the Sangh and may be the publishers thought that views of the Sangh should come in front of the people.






RSS does not take any decision under pressure: Gujarat RSS chief




RSS does not take any decision under pressure: Gujarat RSS chief





Amdist bitter infighting between various factions of the Gujarat BJP, an editorial in Sadhna' a Gujarati mouthpiece of the RSS attempted to dispel the perception that it has taken Chief Minister Narendra Modi's side by stating that the Sangh does not take any decision under political pressure.
The RSS said that the infighting is the internal matter of the party but Sangh in such a situation remains in touch with leaders and discusses with them what should be their role as a 'swayamsevak'.
The statements come at a time when there is a general perception that the powerful Hindu outfit has aligned with Modi and BJP is facing state elections later this year.
RSS publicity head of Gujarat Pradip Jain told that the article has been published in the weekly magazine of RSS 'Sadhna' as there were misconceptions regarding the Sangh and may be the publishers thought that views of the Sangh should come in front of the people.
The Sanjay Joshi feud, the issue of reliving pracharak Bhaskar Rao Damle, who is supporter of anti-Modi group leader within BJP Keshubhai Patel from its state executive and Modi's bid for prime ministerial post, have created an impression that the RSS is supporting Modi.
In an interview published in 'Sadhna' a Gujarati mouthpiece of the RSS , Gujarat region head of the organisation Jayantibhai Bhadesia denied that removal of Damle or any other decision were taken under political or any other pressure from the state chief minister.
"RSS never takes any decision under political pressure. Throughout the years, RSS has continued to stick to its own system and well defined policies," Bhadesia said. Ahead of the forthcoming assembly election, it seems that instead of working unitedly the BJP is on the roads of fragmentation, as former chief minister Patel and other senior leaders have indicated that they will float their own political front to take on Modi in the state elections.
Expressing his view on the role of RSS when the infighting is at its peak, Bhadesia said, "It is the internal matter of BJP. RSS believes that everybody has to mind its own business. But RSS continues to keep in touch with its swayam sevaks and guide them appropriately."
Sources in the RSS said that joint general secretary of RSS, Suresh Soni had recently visited the state and met both Modi and Patel to broker peace between the two warring groups but the attempt has not fructified. The infighting between Modi and Keshubhai groups, has also divided the Sangh parivar in Gujarat down the line whenthe state is considered to be laboratory for RSS.
Bhadesia said it is baseless to say that RSS work in the state has been affeced due to infighting.
"It is totally baseless to say that the work has been affected due to infighting. In fact looking at the progress of RSS 'shakhas' in the state.. the work has increased by as much as 10 per cent," Bhadesia said.
Bhadesia also went on to say in the mouthpiece that a report recently published in one of the local dailies alleging that as RSS runs on money provided by Gujarat government and that is the reason that organisation is taking decision in favour of Modi, are far from truth.
"The allegations are far from truth. I reiterate that RSS work runs exclusively on the sums offered by its devoted swayamsevaks," Bhadesia said.
Regarding the relieving of three senior pracharaks from state including Damle, who has taken side of Patel, Bhadesia said, "RSS has its own system for aged senior pracharaks and they have not been sacked. For the sake of age and health, this system has been introduced".




RSS does not take any decision under political pressure: Jayantibhai Bhadesia
11 Jul, 2012, 1602 hrs IST, PTI

AHMEDABAD: Amidst bitter infighting between various factions of the Gujarat BJP, the RSS today attempted to dispel the perception that it has taken Chief Minister Narendra Modi's side by stating that the Sangh does not take any decision under political pressure.

The RSS said that the infighting is the internal matter of the party but Sangh in such a situation remains in touch with leaders and discusses with them what should be their role as a 'swayamsevak'.

The statements come at a time when there is a general perception that the powerful Hindu outfit has aligned with Modi and BJP is facing state elections later this year.

The Sanjay Joshi feud, the issue of reliving pracharak Bhaskar Rao Damle, who is supporter of anti-Modi group leader within BJP Keshubhai Patel from its state executive and Modi's bid for prime ministerial post, have created an impression that the RSS is supporting Modi.

In an interview published in 'Sadhna' a Gujarati mouthpiece of the RSS here, Gujarat region head of the organisation Jayantibhai Bhadesia denied that removal of Damle or any other decision were taken under political or any other pressure from the state chief minister.

"RSS never takes any decision under political pressure. Throughout the years, RSS has continued to stick to its own system and well defined policies," Bhadesia said.

Ahead of the forthcoming assembly election, it seems that instead of working unitedly the BJP is on the roads of fragmentation, as former chief minister Patel and other senior leaders have indicated that they will float their own political front to take on Modi in the state elections.

Expressing his view on the role of RSS when the infighting is at its peak, Bhadesia said, "It is the internal matter of BJP. RSS believes that everybody has to mind its own business. But RSS continues to keep in touch with its swayam sevaks and guide them appropriately."

Sources in the RSS said that joint general secretary of RSS, Suresh Soni had recently visited the state and met both Modi and Patel to broker peace between the two warring groups but the attempt has not fructified.

Fwd: {satyapravah} Punya Bhumi: The Homeland of Vedic Agamic Hinduism-Vijaya Rajiva-9 July 2012

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From: "Sandhya Jain" <sandhya206@bol.net.in>
Date: 9 July 2012 6:45:42 AM GMT+05:30
To: "Sandhya Jain" <sandhya206@bol.net.in>
Subject: {satyapravah} Punya Bhumi: The Homeland of Vedic Agamic Hinduism-Vijaya Rajiva-9 July 2012
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Punya Bhumi: The Homeland of Vedic Agamic Hinduism

Vijaya Rajiva

9 July 2012

By definition, Hinduism is Vedic Agamic. The Vedic Rishis spoke of the river Sindhu, and it is best to retain the word 'Hindu' (the Persians having changed the word slightly) so that the historically grounded origins of Hinduism are preserved and do not get lost in a refined Vedantism. Two further questions need to be addressed: first is the link between Veda and Agama, and the second is the link between Vedic Agamic Hinduism and the idea of the Punya Bhumi (sacred land).

 

By Vedic is meant the entire corpus of the four Vedas, the Brahmanas, the Aranyakas, the Upanishads and the Bhashyas. By Agama is meant the ritual, the temples, the murtis and the philosophy that developed from the Vedic tradition and whose traditions are Sanskritic. Attempts to delink them have gone on since the 19th century by Hindu reform movements such as the Brahmo Samaj and the Arya Samaj. Both these movements sought to retain a refined Vedantism, by which they meant that originally there was no worship of murtis (images of gods) or Vedic rituals or temples, while a universal principle, Brahman, may be worshipped. They were largely influenced by their connections with the Christian Church and the missionaries. Both these movements now represent fringe movements within the Hindu fold, and sometimes Brahmoism is placed outside the Hindu tradition. Some consider India as having nine officially listed religions: Hinduism, Jainism, Buddhism, Sikhism, Christianity, Islam, Zoroastrianism, Judaism, Brahmoism.

The World Council of Brahmos has its own website. The Law Commission of Bangladesh speaks about Hindus, Brahmos, Muslims etc. In India, The National Commission for Minorities lists Others (this could include Brahmoism).

Attempts to delink the Vedas from the Agamas got a significant boost when the anti-Hindu movement driven largely by Church-inspired and politically ambitious individuals in the Dravidian movement set up further confusions in the 1950s. Much of this has lost its momentum and the Vedic Agamic link remains firm simply as Hinduism. The reader is requested to read Kausalya Santhanam, 'The Cultural Connection: Dr. R. Nagaswamy's Mirror of Tamil and Sanskrit, The Hindu, July 5, 2012. Dr. Nagaswamy, a former Director of the Department of Archeology, Government of Tamil Nadu, enunciates that at no time did Tamil develop independently of Sanskrit (they worked together) and that this can be traced back to Vedic times.

In previous articles, the present writer has indicated that the Vedic Agamic tradition is the target of anti-Hindu forces, which include the proselytising faiths and as well the 'liberal' deracinated Hindus still in thrall of the Macaulay project as elucidated in the Minutes of 1835, viz., Indians in blood but English (read Western) in their convictions and thinking.

 

The second theme that needs to be addressed is the question of the Punya Bhumi, the sacred land of the Hindus. The two largest minority groups have their sacred land outside India, Christians in Jerusalem and Bethlehem, and Muslims in Saudi Arabia. Their attachment to India is due only to it being their Janma Bhumi, land of birth. Only for Hindus does the Punya Bhumi and Janma Bhumi coincide.

 

For the minorities, any meaningful history begins with the coming of their religion to India, although many are converts to these faiths. There is an attempt to undermine the Hindu history of India prior to the political domination of adherents of these faiths, to negate the Hindu glory in its homeland. Much stress and strain and confusion can be avoided if the minority communities accept their Indian citizenship, worship their gods in peace, and resist the desire to bring the nation under the dominion of their respective faiths.

 

What requires further elucidation for both Hindus and minorities is understanding the continuity of the Vedic Agamic tradition and why it cannot be dented and why India should continue to be the Punya Bhumi. Hindus believe that the Devas and Devatas worshipped by the Vedic Rishis continually inhabit the land. This is the key to understanding why all from the rural villager to the urban middle classes continue to worship the murtis housed in temples all over the subcontinent.

The Rig Veda's Devas and Devatas were seen in the visonary experiences of the Rishis and represent the structure of the universe as they saw it in their visions. Hindus believe that the Vedas had always existed and were apaurusheya (not of human origin). The Rishis were simply channels through which the divine world communicated with humans. Vedic rituals were therefore entrusted to groups of people (students in the ashrams of Vedic rishis) who would handle their duties with complete devotion and care. These were handed down from generation to generation and eventually became hereditary. Thanks to this, present day Hindus have their oral tradition intact in a way that has not been replicated in any other religious system of this ancient period.

The Vedic rituals (yagnas) were conducted in the open in altars built of wood and fire which was generated by the rubbing of sticks and the chanting of mantras or sacred utterances, believed to replicate the divine sounds of the universe, in the way Pythagoras, the Greek philosopher most influenced by India, spoke of the music of the universe, later repeated by William Shakespeare as the music of the spheres (Cymbeline). In the Upanishads, the celestial sounds of the mantras are described in terms of Sabda Brahman.

Perhaps the most famous and recent of the descriptions of the fire ceremony is the unforgettable one provided by the Kanchi Shankaracharya:

"… a yajna is making an oblation to a deity in the fire with the chanting of mantras. In a sense the mantras themselves constitute the form of the deities invoked. In another sense, the mantras, like the materials placed in the fire, are the sustenance of the celestials invoked". (Hindu Dharma: The Vedas).

The Vedic ceremony in its original pristine purity has been preserved by the Nambudiri Brahmins of Kerala, down to the minutest details of the bricks fired for the altar, the rubbing of sticks to produce fire, and so on, and of course, the meticulous recitation of the mantras. For Hindus in the diaspora and Hindus elsewhere in India, a good source of information is the monumental work done by Frits Stahl of the University of California who videographed the entire ceremony lasting some 12 days (The Vedic Ritual of the Fire Altar, 1983, Berkeley, vols. 1&2, put together in conjunction with the Nambudiris who conducted the ceremony).

The Vedic corpus referred to above (minus the Bhashyas) is referred to as Sruti because it was received by the Rishis from divine sources. The Agama corpus largely in Sanskrit, which continued this in ritual, temples, and deities consecrated and installed in temples, are also considered Sruti. This sacred link, the Vedic Agamic link, as believed by the Hindus, continues to this day and is the core of Hindu worship.

Some misguided and ill-informed Hindus try to compare the Indian situation with the blood-and-soil theme of some European countries like Germany, where the Romantic Movement of the 18th and 19th centuries focused on the close relationship between native-born Germans and the soil of Germany. While some linkage between Janma Bhumi and nationalism is understandable, the difference with the Hindu situation is significant.

The German Romantic Movement which spawned the idea of blood-and-soil was initiated by German musicians, litterateurs and thinkers in the 18th century (the leading figure being Herder, 1744-1843) and it was somewhat diffuse in its self-understanding. There was emphasis on the German language, as opposed to other European languages. There was an invocation to the nation as built on German soil and so on. But there was no authentic religious sanction because there could not be anything prior to Christianity that Germans could meaningfully look upon for inspiration. The Holy Roman Empire was established in 962 AD by Otto the First as a direct dispensation from the Catholic Church. Earlier in 800 AD the Church had crowned Charlemagne (of German descent) as a Holy Roman Emperor. These two rulers continued conquest and conversion. Thus continued the Church's era of conquest of various parts of the world, starting from the first millennium under Constantine.

There is no basis of comparison with the Vedic Agamic tradition and its link in the Hindu mind to the idea of Punya Bhumi. Only anti-Hindu forces continue to peddle this anaemic comparison. For Hindus themselves, cherishing the sacred notion of Punya Bhumi where the Devas and Devatas reside from the Himalayas to Kanyakumari and from east to west is what gives special relevance to the notion of Janma Bhumi.

 

The writer is a Political Philosopher who taught at a Canadian university

 

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