(This is a reprint from NewsBred).
Union minister of state Anantkumar Hegde's remarks that "BJP had come to power to change the Constitution" and that it would "do so in the near future" made Shashi Tharoor quote RSS ideologues and their supposed hostility to the Indian Constitution. Shekhar Gupta, on whose website the article appeared yesterday, tweeted that 'the cat is out of the bag." These two oily characters, both literally and figuratively, have long been damn annoying with their selective truths.
Tharoor threshes out quotes from the works of former RSS supremo M.S. Golwalkar and Deen Dayal Upadhyay to show their disapproval of Indian Constitution. The insinuation is that our holy grail, the Indian Constitution, is not safe under the present dispensation of BJP and its fountainhead, RSS.
Only if Tharoor could explain to us that why in their decade-long years in government (1998-2004 and 2014 onwards), BJP has made no amendment--NO AMENDMENT WHATSOEVER--on the religious statutes of the Constitution? Surely, if this is their hidden agenda, they would've made a move to change the status-quo.
If Tharoor could explain to us why a political party with the so-called "Hindutva" agenda is seen as a pro-Capitalist party, swearing by "development" and being no activist, unfortunately, on the issues of cultural heritage?
If we could be explained why all the BJP election manifestos since 1980 have asserted the right of legal equality regardless of religion?
If Tharoor could throw light on why the introduction of Uniform Civil Code would be such a bad thing to do?
Or why amendment in Article 30 is not desirable which allows minorities to set up schools, have religion-centric curriculum and get government funds to boot while denying the same to Hindu majority?
Or for that matter Article 25 which allows "propagation" of one's religion, knowing fully well that Hinduism doesn't have a tradition of proselytization while Islam and Christianity do. As Dr. Koenraad Elst says: "It's like giving wolves and sheep the equal liberty to eat each other." [i]
Or why Article 370 must not be amended which doesn't allow non-Kashmiri Indians from acquiring property and citizenship in J and K state? Why such a measure, conceived and executed with the understanding that it was only temporary, be allowed to continue to damage the fabric of one nation?
That why under Article 26 Hindus do not have the fundamental right to maintain institutions for religious or charitable purposes, as interpreted by the Supreme Court (Shri Adi Vishveshvara of the Kashi Vishvanath temple vs Uttar Pradesh case)? [ii] Why Christians and Muslims can manage their own place of worship but the Hindus' religious institutions have been taken-over by the state governments?
What about the discrimination against Hindus
while Minorities Finance Corporation are functional in almost all the states of
(In passing, let me throw a Golwalkar quote to sober up Tharoor on his hysteria: "Let the Muslims evolve their own laws. I will be happy when they arrive at the conclusion that polygamy is not good for them, but I would not like to force my views on them," said Golwalkar. [iii] So much for RSS and BJP's "Hindutva" mission !).
Critics like Tharoor can only go back to Golwalkar and Deen Dayal Upadhyay who have been dead for nearly half a century. In the intervening period, the likes of Tharoor can't get hold of any stick to beat BJP and RSS with. This in itself is a proof of BJP's development "sabka saath, sabka vikaas" plank.
Tharoor won't tell that Golwalkar was a spiritual leader--who almost became a Shankaracharya--and was completely anti-political. Golwalkar never warmed up to Hindu Mahasabha's political goals. As for Deen Dayal Upadhyay, Tharoor would've done well to point out the merit of former's "Integral Humanism" which is BJP's core philosophy.
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