A Voiceless Majority

Within the domain of Indian politics, the most accepted truth is the most disputed. Thus it is that secularism stands divorced from Hindus, while the rest of the non-Hindus are wedded to secularism.

It's one of the most fascinating ironies in India's politico-cultural history. The Hindus, who form an overwhelming majority of the country - over 80% of the population - have no "mouthpiece" of their own in the media. Forget mouthpiece, they have few, if any, "friends" in the media - if you ignore papers like the Organiser, the official paper of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS). Probe further, and you could say, forget having "friends", large sections of the mainstream media can be described as stridently "anti-Hindu".

In fact, there is nothing new about this. Ever since the time when Smt Indira Gandhi as PM in the early eighties wielded "secularism" as a political weapon to beat the "Hindu Jan Sangh" and later the BJP, it has been the bane of the Hindus to be kind of unsung heroes - or deemed villains - in their own land.

No right-thinking person would dispute the fact that India is secular mainly because of its largely Hindu majority. This is especially borne out when we take a look at our neighbours. Pakistan claims to be secular, but that does not even qualify for a good laugh. And the rest - Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka are not worth mentioning in the context of secularism. The harsh truth is, a "secular" Islamic country is a contradiction in terms, while terming Hindustan "secular" is overstating the obvious.

No right thinking Indian of any persuasion, belief and faith would dispute this, but within the domain of Indian politics, the most accepted truth is the most disputed. Thus it is that secularism stands divorced from Hindus, while the rest of the non-Hindus are wedded to secularism. For the Congress, the Communists and the rest of the Secular Parivar, the Muslims are the shining exemplar of secularism, while the Hindus' link to secularism, if any, is purely a matter of accident.

There cannot be a greater distortion of truth than this, but the mainstream media and the intelligentsia are quite willing to play along with this fraud on the people. Thus, while the minorities are feted and pampered, the Hindus are wooed only on the basis of their lowest common denominator, the castes to which they belong.

There's a simple talisman to test this anti-Hindu theory. Does anyone remember any political party having spearheaded a campaign for fulfilling the demands of the Hindus? None, except the BJP. That's why the BJP is forever condemned as a communal, anti-Muslim party. It's akin to the shoot-the-messenger syndrome. Keep the Hindus divided (it is not difficult, as they are not a historically cohesive unit thought this by itself is not something to be ashamed about, however, that's a subject for another article), and hang the party that supports the Hindus. That's how and why the BJP has become a pariah for most of the media.

The BJP is no hero, but then it is also not the only villain of the piece, is it? And the rest of the Secular Parivar are no heroes either. Remember the rustic saying, 'hamaam mein sab nange hain', everyone in the washroom are naked.

In contrast to this, there are umpteen instances of how various political parties eagerly lineup to take up cudgels on behalf of the minorities, either in deed, and if not in deed, at least in word.

Democracy is a game of numbers, and so you will always find political parties pampering the minorities. But victimizing the majority? Distorting their history, deliberately ignoring their demands, reducing them to second-class citizens, making them feel like aliens in their own land? This only happens in India. This only happens to Hindus.

It's not just politics, the media too, like I said earlier, is a willing player in this anti-Hindu school of thought. Almost every major political party has a supporter in the media, both print and TV. The Hindu is edited by an avowed Communist. The Times of India, like the Indian Express, is a strong votary of secular parties and thinks supporting "Hindu demands" is gross and unbecoming of secularism. Outlook magazine openly supports the Congress, its editor Vinod Mehta flaunts his fancy for Sonia Gandhi, and is even proud of his pro-Pakistan image. As for TV, what's common between all the TV news channels, CNN IBN, NDTV, Star News, and top guns, Prannoy Roy, Rajdeep Sardesai, Karan Thapar, Vinod Dua? They are all pro-Secular Parivar at best, and anti-BJP at worst. Read anti-Hindu. In the public domain, the image of a Hindu is grossly at variance with the truth, viz. trishul-wielding, backward looking, divisive, and intolerant of other faiths and communities. Hello, it makes you want to vomit. It's a bit like saying, the Americans are staunch votaries of communism!